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The  phi 1 o  s  o phy  of 
school  management 


\ 

Southern  Branch 
of  the 

University  of  California 

Los  Angeles 

Form  L   1 

3011 
T59 
cop.l 


PEC  2  4  1952 


DEC  2     RECO 


Fonn  L-9-lo»']ii.''J.'> 


y^ 


THE  PHILOSOPHY 


OP 


SCHOOL    MANAGEMENT 


BY 

ARNOLD   TOMPKINS 

AUTHOR  OF   "the   I'HILOSOPHY   OK  TEACHINQ "   AND   "THE  SCIENCE 
OF    DISCOUKSB" 


/38sS 


The  School  is  an  organic,  spiritual  unity. —  W.  A.  Jones 


GINN  &  CU.Ml'ANY 

BOSTON  •  NEW  YORK  •  CHICAGO  •  LONDON 

STATE  NORMAL  SaUii. 

liOS  HJSCEUSS,  CETj. 


Copyright,  1895, 
By  Arnold  Tompkins. 

AU  rights  reserved. 
G9.9 


1E.\)t   atftengum   jgceg»t 

GINN   &    COMPANY  •  PRO- 
PRIETORS .  BOSTON  •  U.S.A. 


PREFACE. 

The  nucleus  of  the  ibllowiiig  discussion  appeared  as  a  eliap- 
ter  in  tiie  first  edition  of  "  Tlie  Piiilosopiiy  of  Teacliing." 
It  is  now  expanded  into  a  companion  volume,  with  a  more 
I'luulamental  setting  than  at  first  given  ;  and  tluis  with  a  scope 
extended  to  inchide  management  from  tlie  kindergarten  to 
tlie  universitj.  Those  who  wish  the  easier  and  the  more 
practical  discussion  will  find  it  beginning  on  page  G7.  It 
is  thought,  however,  that  a  patient  development  from  the 
lirst  will  be  most  satisfactor}'  in  the  end. 

The  spirit  of  the  book  is  clearly  traceable  to  contact  with 
\V.  A.  JoxKS,  first  president  of  the  Indiana  »State  Normal 
School.  Had  it  not  been  for  the  influence  of  his  class  work 
and  his  dailj'  practice  in  management,  this  book  would,  per- 
haps, not  have  been  written;  and  I  can  but  wish  it  were  a 
more  worthy  monument  to  the  memory  of  the  man  whose 
potent  ideas  stimulated  so  many  to  earnest  effort  in  planting 
fundamental  educational  doctrines.  For  wise  counsel  in  the 
general  treatment  of  the  subject  I  am  ever  grati'ful  to  L.  II. 
Jones,  Superintendent  of  Schools,  Cleveland,  Ohio. 


ARNOLD  TOMPKINS. 


Chicago,  Ti.i.inois, 

May  10,  1895. 


C  O  N  T  E  :n"  T  s. 


PAGE 

INTRODUCTION vii 

THE   FUNDAMENTAL   LAW 1 

FouikI  within  tlie  Organism  itself 1 

Found  witliin  the  Organism  a,s  a  Siiiritual  Process      ....  3 

Found  within  tlie  Spiritual  Unity  of  the  Teacher  and  Pupil    .  15 

Found  within  the  Spiritual  Unity  of  the  Pupil 21 

THE    LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM 35 

U.VIFYIXG    QiALITIES    I.V    THE    TeACHER 38 

Freedom  in  the  Vocation 41 

The  Pupil's  Ideal 44 

Professional  Spirit 43 

Self-forgetful  Entiiusiasm  for  the  Pui)irs  (iood  ....  54 

Definite  Sense  of  tlie  Process  of  Self-Healization    ...  57 

Cousciousness  of  Organic  Unity  of  Suhjcct  and  Ohject  59 

Sensitiveness  to  Unity  in  the  School  Organism     ....  64 

Unifying  Conditioxs  of  Teachek  and  Plmls 67 

Personal  Contact 69 

The  School-room 72 

Commniiicalile  Relation  of  Teacher  and  Pupil 73 

Economy  of  Energy  in  Teacher  and  Pupil 75 

Energy  not  diverted  from  Suhject  to  Self 7ti 

By  Uncomfortahle  Seats 76 

liy  Improper  Temperature  of  Room 77 

By  Bad  Ventilation  of  Room 77 

By  Bad  Ligliting  of  Room 77 

Energy  not  diverted  from  Suitject  to  Otlier  Things  .     .  78 

Tlirongli  Touch 78 

Throngli  Siglit 79 

Thrtingii   Hearing 79 

Througli  Prepossessing  Trains  of  Tiiought     ....  80 


VI  CONTENTS. 

PAOB 

Instruments  of  School  Work 81 

Apparatus 81 

Laboratory 81 

Library 82 

Text-books 84 

Unifying  Qualities   anu   Conditions   secured.  —  School 

SuPEUviaiON 84 

Supervising  Instruction. —  Superintendent 80 

Functions  and  Quail ticat ions 87 

Selecting  Teacher 90 

Aiding  Teacher 92 

Supervising  Conditions  of  Listruction.  —  Director     ...  97 

Relation  to  Teacher  and  Superintendent 97 

Professional  Character  and  Responsibility 98 

Basis  and  Limitation  of  Supervision 99 

THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE  LAW 103 

The  Organism  in  the  Process  of  Instruction     ....  104 

Unity  in  the  School  as  a  Whole 105 

Organization  of  the  School 108 

Classification 109 

Gradation 114 

The  Program 130 

Pupils  in  Active  Unity  with  Teacher 132 

Unity  in  Class  studying 133 

Conditions  of   Pupils  before  set  to  Work 134 

The  Assignment  of  the  Lesson 134 

Certainty  of  Class  understanding  Assignment  .     .     .  136 

Needs  for  Work  supplied ;  Unnecessary  Things  removed  137 

Class  set  to  Work 137 

Class  to  hold  to  Work  assigned 138 

Unity  in  Class  reciting 141 

Proper  Condition  of  Pupils 141 

Preparation  of  Lesson  by  Teacher 141 

Attitude  of  Attention .  143 

The  Forward  Movement  of  Class 143 

Directions 143 

Questions 146 

Explanations  or  Lectures 150 

Obstacles  in  Forward  Movement 152 

Weak  Pupils 152 


CONTENTS.  Vll 

PAGE 

Intrusion  of  Foreign  Elements 15.3 

Personal  Attack  of  Teacher  on  rupil 156 

Restoration  of  Broken  Unity 157 

The  Law  of    Restoration 157 

Application  of  the  Law 162 

The  First  Step 163 

The  Second  Step 165 

Effect  of  Application  of  Law  on  I'njiil 175 

Effect  of  Application  on  Teacher 179 

The  True  Point  of  Skill  in  Mana<;emcnt 181 

Ethical  Training  within  the  Ouganism 183 

Harmony  of  Means  and  End 185 

The  Law  against  Artificial  Incentives 185 

Per  cents 185 

Examinations 189 

Prizes  and  Honors .193 

Emulation  and  Uivalry 194 

Influence  of  Social  Combination 196 

Politeness 198 

Order 202 

Trutlifulness 203 

Industry 205 

Justice 207 

Altruism 209 

Katioual  Freedom 212 


INDEX 219 


SIATE  NORMAL  SCHOOL, 
itos  fljjcsiias,  CEis. 


INTIIODUCTIQ]^. 


The  teaching  process  having  l)een  considered  in  "Tlie 
Philosophy  of  Teaching,"  it  is  now  in  order  to  consider 
the  school  as  an  organized  means  in  making  that  jjrocess 
effective. 

To  make  this  discussion  of  the  most  practical  service, 
it  must  reduce  the  complex  scliool  process  to  the  unity 
of  a  single  principle,  to  a  universal  law  of  management; 
hence  the  "Philosophy  of  Management."  It  is  impos- 
sible, as  well  as  undesirable,  to  prescribe  a  complete  list 
of  specific  duties.  The  wisest  economy  is  to  make  clear 
the  one  principle  which  has  power  to  take  care  of  all  in- 
dividual cases;  and  the  deeper  the  principle,  the  greater 
the  power  and  the  economy.  Pesides,  specific  rules 
deaden  and  enslave,  wliile  a  universal  law  guides  and 
inspires  with  a  consciousness  of  freedom  and  power. 

A  catalogue  of  "do's"  md  "do  not's "  may  serve  the 
mere  operative  in  a  factory,  wliere  the  material  conditions 
remain  iixcd;  but  the  teacher,  with  whom  the  conditions 
are  perpetually  varying,  must  be  gui(U'd  b}'  a  principle 
which  tact  and  ingenuity  may  apply  to  each  new  case  as 
it  arises.     Thus  only  can  the  teacher  move  with  certainty 


X  INTRODUCTION. 

and  precision;  while  the  application  of  unvarying  rules 
to  varying  conditions  is  the  prolific  -source  of  error  and 
confusion.  A  fundamental  principle  —  that  is,  a  prin- 
ciple inherent  in  all  the  facts  under  consideration  —  has 
not  only  the  greatest  economic  breadth  of  application 
by  including  the  whole  system  of  facts,  but  insures  the 
greater  certainty  in  dealing  with  any  one  of  the  facts  in 
the  system;  because  universal  truth  is  also  the  essential 
truth. 

The  teacher,  therefore,  who  would  seek  skill  in  the 
art  of  school  management,  must  ground  himself  well  in 
the  underlying  princij)le;  for  skilful  practice  implies 
sound  theory.  It  is  unsafe,  as  well  as  illogical,  to  set 
theory  over  against  practice,  as  if  the  more  of  one  the 
less  of  the  other.  School  management  is  a  process,  and 
the  theory  of  it  is  the  theory  of  a  practice.  The  two  are 
organically  one,  —  two  sides  of  the  same  process,  the 
process  in  thought  and  the  process  in  external  realization. 
Theory  is  practice  in  thought;  practice  is  theory  emerging 
from  thought.  The  one  is  the  process  in  idea,  the  other 
the  idea  in  process.  The  idea  cannot  go  forth  in  process 
till  it  is  first  formed  in  mind;  hence  every  one  who 
practices  must  have  a  theory  of  some  kind  ;  and,  other 
things  equal,  the  practice  will  be  good  to  the  degree  of 
excellence  in  the  theory.  The  more  perfectly  the  school 
is  held  in  mind  as  an  organic  process,  the  more  perfectly 
may  the  process  be  realized  in  the  school.  And  the 
most  j)erfect  form  of  the  school  process  in  thought  is 
that    of    philosophy,  —  the    form    which    holds    all    the 


INTRODUCTION.  xi 

complex  elements  of  the  process  iu   the  grasp  of  a  uni- 
versal law. 

But  soun<l  theory  does  not  insure  successful  practice. 
Tact  and  common  sense  have  a  large,  if  not  the  largest, 
share  in  the  result.  Principles  cannot  apply  themselves; 
there  is  always  supposed  to  be  a  teacher  wlio  adjusts  law 
to  a  given  case.  Tact,  the  power  to  touch  an  instance 
with  a  law,  is  personal  and  private,  and  cannot  be  sup- 
plied by  a  book  on  theor}^  — or  on  practice  either,  for  that 
matter.  This  fact  is  overlooked  by  tliose  who  clamor  for 
the  practical  iu  the  form  of  rules  and  recipes.  Xo  rule 
can  be  made  to  fit  the  case  before  it  arises.  If  a  teacher 
could  be  told  how  to  manage  a  boy  in  a  given  offence, 
—  a  boy  of  given  age,  disposition,  temperament,  home 
training  of  a  specific  kind,  etc.,  etc.,  to  color  of  hair  and 
eyes,  —  it  would  be  useless,  since  this  case  can  never 
arise  again.  There  is  a  realm  of  immediate  and  personal 
responsibility  touching  each  new  case  as  it  arises,  which 
cannot  be  shifted  to  the  side  of  theory;  and  this  is  the 
realm  of  skill  in  the  teacher.  Unsound  theory  cannot 
work;  sound  theory  may  not,  because  it  may  have  to 
work  through  imperfect  instrumentalities.  Let  those, 
therefore,  who  are  disposed  to  condemn  certain  theories, 
withhold  judgment  till  having  proved  their  skill  bj-  suc- 
cessfully operating  under  other  principles.  It  is  always 
possible  for  those  who  fail  in  following  one  theory  to 
fail  under  all  others.  Hence  this  book,  while  announcing 
so  positively  the  value  of  a  universal  principle,  and 
developing   the    idea   with    earnest   conviction,   does    not 


Xll  INTRODUCTION. 

hope  for  satisfactory  practice  from  all  who  should  be 
thus  indoctviiiutod.  All  that  can  he  done  is  to  supply  the 
indispensable  guiding  thought,  in  light  of  which  success- 
ful management  is  possible.  After  all,  the  individual 
teacher,  knowing  his  own  peculiarities,  and  the  particular 
circunistances  under  wliich  he  operates,  nuist  work  out 
his  own  salvation  with  fear  and  trembling. 

But  the  saddest  admission  to  be  made  is  that  both 
tlieory  and  art  may  fail.  Given  both  the  science  and 
the  skill  of  management  as  perfect  as  could  be  ex])ected 
within  the  limits  of  human  nature,  and  there  are  cases 
which  resist  all  effort,  be  it  ever  so  wise,  patient,  and 
persistent.  Some  pupils,  through  heredit}",  and  home 
and  street  life,  resist  to  tlie  last  the  art  of  the  divinely 
gifted  teacher  operating  on  the  soundest  principles.  The 
school  organization  is  a  power  for  good,  but  it  need  sur- 
prise no  one  that  it  cannot  regenerate  on  the  spot  every 
specimen  of  humanity  that  comes  within  its  influence. 
The  State  has  been  operating  with  imposing  machinery 
for  ages;  but  lo!  we  have  the  bad  citizen  with  us  always. 
The  Church,  with  its  manifold  auxiliaries,  works  with 
ceaseless  industry  and  inspired  zeal  to  save  fallen  man, 
but  man  is  still  fallen.  Social  science,  in  the  vigor,  zeal, 
and  hope  of  youth,  has  still  set  the  millennium  in  the 
distant  future.  In  the  long  run  all  of  these  worthy  and 
heroic  efforts  are  for  progress;  but  they  must  tolerate  evil 
a  while  longer,  trusting  to  the  measured,  peaceful  course 
of  time  to  prove  that  "through  the  ages  one  increasing 
purpose  runs."      The  school,  as  a  means  of  ameliorating 


INTRODUCTION.  xiii 

the  condition  of  man,  is  grounded  in  sound  faith,  dis- 
tinctly pronounced,  and  justifiable  by  its  fruits.  Social 
Science,  the  Church,  the  State,  and  the  Family,  with  all 
their  confusion  of  differences  in  theory,  in  creeds,  and 
constitutions,  do  verily  believe  the  school  a  power  unto 
righteousness.  This  charge  let  the  teacher  accept  in  good 
faith,  and  put  one  more  shoulder  to  the  wheel  of  universal 
progress;  but  not  as  a  contract  to  bring  at  once  all  the 
discordant  elements  resisting  the  other  institutions  into 
one  peaceful  and  harmonious  school  life.  The  teacher 
should  not  be  expected  to  manage  what  all  the  other 
organizations,  especially  the  family,   fail  to  manage. 

If  any  teacher  should  take  the  foregoing  as  an  excus. 
for  anything  less  than  the  wisest,  tiie  most  persistent,  and 
the  most  sympathetic  effort  to  bring  the  resisting  elements 
into  the  unity  of  school  life,  and  thus  save  the  pupil 
through  unity  with  his  own  higher  life,  I  should  wish 
the  admission  had  been  suppressed.  The  teacher  must 
accept  the  largest  responsibility,  and  measure  up  to  it  as 
fully  as  possible;  yet  he  should  not  die  in  despair  because 
all  imperfections  in  the  world  are  not  to  be  buried  with 
him.  This  admission  of  the  impotency  of  theory  and  art 
to  deal  effectively  at  once  with  certain  conditions  and 
pupils  generally  found  in  all  schools,  is  made  as  the 
saving  clause  for  those  intensely  earnest  and  sensitive 
teachers  who  feel  conscience-stricken  because  some  stub- 
born blood  globule  holds  out  against  all  wise  and  skilful 
effort.  Is  there  not  a  limit  somewhere  to  the  teacher's 
responsibility?      Even   the   great   Teacher  was  forced  to 


xiv  INTRODUCTION. 

exclaim,  "0  Jerusalem,  Jerusalem,  thou  that  killest  the 
prophets,  and  stonest  them  which  are  sent  unto  thee,  how 
often  would  I  have  gathered  thy  children  together,  even 
as  a  hen  gathereth  lier  chickens  under  her  wings,  and  ye 
would  not!  "  Even  so;  they  would  not,  and  He  could  not 
If  they  still  will  not,  how  can  we? 


SIA1£  NORMAL  SOiu 


SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  LAW. 

/  e>  &so' 

A  SCHOOL  is  quite  a  complex  object,  for  it  includes 
teachers,  pupils,  parents,  officers,  tax-payers,  funds, 
houses,  and  apparatus.  Tliese  diverse  parts  exist  in 
unity,  since  they  co-operate  to  one  end  under  the  moving 
force  of  a  single  idea.  All  tlie  diverse  acts  of  the  several 
factors  focus  themselves  in  the  one  single  act  for  which 
all  the  acts  are  performed.  Hence  the  school  is  an 
organic  process.  It  is  this  process  which  is  to  be  man- 
aged, and  for  which  there  must  be  a  fundamental  law,  — 
a  law  which  gives  unity  to  the  diversity  of  functions  in 
the  manifold  parts,  —  the  Law  of  Unity. 

This  is  obviously  tlie  law  of  any  organism  whatever. 
An  organism  can  have  no  other  ;  but  this  law  needs 
detailed  specification  to  appear  as  the  working  power  in 
school  management.  In  defining  the  law  to  this  end,  it 
must  first  be  observed  that  the  law  has  its  sanction  :  — 

Within  the  Organism  Itself.  —  The  law  of  the  school 
is  inherent  in  the  school,  and  not  externally  imposed. 
The  botanist  may  discover  laws  of  growth   in   tin-  blade 

1 


2  SCII(X)L  MANAGEMENT. 

of  grass,  but  he  cannot  legislate  for  it.  The  physiologist 
may  announce  laws  for  tlie  circulation  of  the  blood,  but 
he  cannot  dictate  those  laws.  Tlie  law  of  an  organism 
is  its  own  inherent  energy  moving  forward,  l)y  variety  of 
functions  in  unity,  to  realize  the  end  which  called  forth 
the  organism.  Laws  cannot  be  imposed  upon  it;  external 
legislation  cannot  control  its  action.  The  solar  sj'stem 
moves  on  in  the  way  appointed  by  its  own  constitution. 

This  is  all  plain  enough,  but  it  does  seem,  in  the  case 
of  social  organisms,  —  objects  of  man's  fixing,  —  that  laws 
are  injected  from  without  b}'  those  who  set  up  the  organi- 
zation. A  second  thought  will  reveal  here  also  the  in- 
herence of  law,  and  that  what  man  does  is  but  external 
manipulation  in  obedience  to  inner  law.  However  much 
man  may  fix  up  plans  for  any  form  of  social  regeneration, 
things  plod  on  in  tlieir  own  seemingly  stubborn  way, 
in  obedience  to  their  own  nature  and  destiny.  All  the 
learning  and  legislation  of  a  nation  cannot  change  at  will 
the  current  of  life  in  a  single  city;  and  all  helpfully  done 
must  be  done  in  obedience  to  its  own  inherent  law  of 
development.  The  State  itself  proclaims  what  laws  to 
write  in  the  books  for  its  own  governing ;  and  it  is 
obedient  to  them  because  they  are  its  inward  laws  out- 
wardly manifested.  There  is,  however,  a  widely  ex- 
tended theory  to  the  contrary,  —  a  theor}-  which  Herbert 
Spencer  combats  in  the  following  paragraph  from  his 
"Social  Statics":  — 

"Practically,  if  not  professedly,  they  (the  disciples  of 
Bentham)  hold,  with  Thrasymachus,  that  nothing   is  in- 


THE   FUNDAMENTAL  LAW.  3 

trinsically  riglit  or  wrong,  but  that  it  becomes  either  by 
tlie  dictum  of  tlie  State.  If  we  are  to  credit  tliem, 
government  determines  wliat  shall  be  morality,  and  not 
morality  wha,t  shall  be  government.  They  believe  in  no 
oracular  principle  by  whose  yea  or  nay  we  may  be  guided; 
their  Delphi  is  the  House  of  Commons.  By  their  account 
man  lives  and  moves  and  has  his  being  by  legislative 
permit.  His  freedom  to  do  this  or  that  is  not  natural, 
but  conferred.  The  question.  Has  the  citizen  any  elaim 
to  the  work  of  his  hands?  can  be  decided  only  by  parlia- 
mentary division.  If  'the  ayes  have  it,'  he  has;  if'  the 
noes,'  he  has  not." 

Man  may  discover,  and  formulate  in  statutes,  laws  in 
organizations,  but  the  laws  are  still  in  the  organizations, 
ready  to  challenge  the  fictions  of  man's  ordaining.  Laws 
and  statutes  are  not  the  same;  they  may  even  be  antago- 
nistic, and  the  law  compelled  to  disown  the  statute.  The 
law  of  the  school  which  concerns  us  here  is  not  the  school 
law  found  in  the  statute  books,  but  the  inherent  nature 
of  the  school  as  legislating  for  itself;  as  giving  law  to  all 
factors  and  functions,  even  to  school  law  itself. 

But  within  this  large  and  complex  organism  all  parts 
and  phases  are  not  eijually  authoritative.  The  law  which 
binds  in  unity  does  not  inhere  in  the  external,  objective, 
and  fixed  parts,  but  must  be  sought:  — 

Within  the  Organism  as  a  Spiritual  Process.  —  Tlie 
fundamental  law  of  the  school  is  implied  in  the  state- 
ment that  "the  school  is  an  organic  spiritual  unit}'." 
It  is  not  merely  the  co-operation  of  objective  and  appar- 


4  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

ently  fixed  factors,  but  a  movement  of  life  through  exter- 
nal forms  back  to  life  again.  The  law  is  not  to  be  found 
in  the  material,  obtrusive,  objective,  and  stationary  factors 
in  the  process  ;  but  within  the  inner  life  wliich  moves 
the  organism  to  the  realization  of  its  purpose,  —  in  the 
spirit  which  makes  alive  to  its  work  the  apparent 
organism,  but  not  in  the  apparent  organism. 

Everything  exists  in  idea,  in  life  and  thought,  before 
it  can  exist  in  objective  reality ;  and  the  function  of  such 
objective  thing  is  to  realize  the  idea  which  created  it. 
Such  is  the  circle  of  its  life  and  the  law  of  its  being. 
The  idea  rapid  transit  brought  forth  the  railroad,  and 
the  railroad  in  turn  must  bring  forth  rapid  transit.  The 
railroad  must  relieve  the  pressure  of  life  which  creates 
it;  but  this  pressure  is  a  constant  force,  and  the  railroad 
is  being  perpetually  created  and  held  to  the  work  of 
relieving  the  pressure.  Tlie  idea  by  which  it  is  realized 
must  in  turn  be  realized  by  it.  Hence  the  railroad  is 
not  a  fixed,  dead,  objective  something,  but  a  constant 
going  out  and  returning  to  life;  it  is  life.  The  objective 
thing  cut  loose  from  the  life  process  is  not  a  railroad;  it 
vanishes  into  nothing  when  cut  from  its  spiritual  moor- 
ings. A  railroad  is  not  merely  the  external  organization 
of  material  parts,  but  a  circle  of  life,  which  is  its  reality 
and  its  law. 

The  idea  of  developing  the  child  by  a  systematic  teach- 
ing process  brings  forth  the  objective  school;  and  this 
in  turn  must  bring  forth  the  development  of  the  child. 
The  objective  school  must  answer  back  to  the  life  which 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  LAW.  6 

supports  it.  It  stands  as  the  middle  term  in  a  series, 
—  between  an  idea  and  its  realization;  but  it  takes  the 
whole  series  to  constitute  the  school.  The  objective, 
lixed  something  called  the  school,  is  only  a  phase  in  the 
process,  and  is  nothing  apart  from  that  process.  It  exists 
in  and  through  realizing  the  idea  by  which  it  itself  is 
realized.  The  real  school  is  the  whole  process,  not  merely 
the  objective  phase  of  it;  it  is  the  constant  outgoing  of 
life  through  an  external  mediating  agency  back  to  life. 
This  circle,  again,  and  not  merely  the  external  organiza- 
tion of  fixed  parts,  is  its  reality  and  its  law. 

And  this  school  process  is  still  more  complex.  The 
idea  which  originates  the  school  has  two  phases, — one 
that  of  a  felt  need  for  sonietliing  to  remove  the  limita- 
tions of  life,  and  the  other  that  of  Instruction  as  a  means 
of  removing  the  limitations.  The  idea  originating  the 
external  organization  purposes  the  freedom  of  the  indi- 
vidual through  instruction.  These  are  the  elements  of 
the  school  in  idea;  neither  can  be  omitted,  nor  can  they 
arise  in  any  other  order.  Instruction  cannot  be  conceived 
without  the  idea  of  an  end  to  be  realized;  and  the  idea 
of  an  external  school  cannot  arise  except  under  the 
thought  of  instruction.  Each  may  exist  in  thought 
without  the  succeeding,  but  not  without  the  preceding; 
which  shows  that  the  subjective  school  is  a  movement 
in  the  direction  named,  —  puri)()se,  instruction,  external 
organization. 

The  foregoing  elements  of  the  school  in  idea  reverse 
themselves  iu   the   process   of   realization;    for   then    the 


6 


SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 


external  organization  comes  first,  after  which  instnirtion 
is  given,  and  then  the  purpose  is  realized.  Neither  can 
this  order  be  reversed.  Tlie  purpose  cannot  be  realized 
without  instruction,  and  the  instruction  cannot  be  given 
without  organized  means  to  that  end.  And  these  three 
phases  of  school  can  exist  only  on  the  foregoing  three  as 
a  basis.  Besides,  they  must  exist  in  the  reverse  order, 
—  are  logically  conditioned  in  that  order.  The  first  in 
idea  is  last  in  objective  reality.  An  idea  always  reverses 
tlie  order  of  its  elements  in  the  process  of  becoming 
external;  the  beginning  becomes  the  end;  "the  first  shall 
be  last,  and  the  last  shall  be  first,"  as  appears  in  the 
following  diagram  of  the  school  process:  — 


The 


The  f  1.  Purpose,  or  Need. 

Idea  -|  2.  Instruction. 

School  y  3.  Organization  —  Management. 
School     i     becoming 

Process,    j       The  [  4.  Organization  —  Management. 

Eeal  ■{  5.  Instruction. 

^    School.  [  6.  Purpose,  or  Need,  Realized. 

Thus  the  objective  school  organization,  both  as  idea 
and  as  objective  reality,  is  the  hinging-poiut  on  which 
the  ideas,  purpose,  and  instruction  fold  back  upon  them- 
selves as  actualized  instruction  and  purpose.  The  ideal 
purpose  and  method  of  instruction  form  the  subject-matter 
in  "The  Philosophy  of  Teaching."  The  hingmg-point, 
through  which  purpose  and  instruction  are  turned  back 
realized,  is  the  subject-matter  for  "  School-Management ;  " 


THE   FUNDAMENTAL   LAW.  7 

and  tlie  fuiKlameutul  law  of  school  inanageineut  is  dis- 
closed in  the  fact  that  the  subject  to  be  treated  is  a 
hinging-point  in  the  school  process,  and  not  a  thing  in 
and  of  itself. 

Thus  we  are  brought  to  the  fact  of  supreme  practical 
importance;  namely,  that  the  fundamental  law  controll- 
ing the  school  as  an  external  organization  cannot  be 
dictated  by  that  organization,  but  has  its  origin  in  the 
process  taken  as  a  whole.  While  the  law  must  arise 
from  within,  as  shown  at  the  outset,  yet  the  law  does  not 
get  its  authority  from  any  part,  but  from  the  school  as 
a  whole,  taken  in  its  entire  circle  of  activity.  The  part, 
sueli  as  tlie  external  organization,  with  which  manage- 
ment has  to  do,  receives  its  law  from  the  whole.  The 
law  of  the  school  is  its  informing  life,  its  inherent 
nature,  wliich  finds  expression  in  the  objective  something 
witli  whicli  school  management  has  to  deal.  All  the 
organic  factors  of  the  external  organization,  incluiliiii,'  the 
school  law  itself,  must  be  tested  by  an  idea  which  is 
antecedent  to,  and  wliich  logically  conditions,  the  external 
and  objective  school 

The  external  organization,  instead  of  dictating  the  law, 
may  even  be  in  oi)positi()n  to  the  law.  Even  the  statute 
embodying  school  law  may  be  antagonistic  to  the  law  of 
the  school.  School  directors,  under  a  false  sense  of 
economy,  sometimes  lower  the  tax  levy  and  shorten  the 
school  term.  This  is  done  by  permission  of  the  school 
law  but  in  opposition  to  the  law  of  the  school.  In  faith- 
ful execution  of  the  school  law,  it  may  be  necessary  to 


8  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

crowd  sixty  pupils  into  the  care  of  one  teacher;  but  the 
idea  which  creates  the  school  has  not  its  freedom  under 
such  conditions.  Under  sulistantially  the  same  condi- 
tions different  States  have  different  laws  regulating  the 
supply  of  books  to  pupils.  These  laws  cannot  all  be  best; 
and  in  so  declaring  we  recognize  something  inherent  in 
the  school  by  which  the  school  law  itself  is  to  be  tested. 
Without  such  recognition  school  questions  could  not  be 
argued.  While  never  agreeing  as  to  what  is  best  in 
school  organization  and  law,  we  do  tacitly  agree  always 
that  there  is  a  best,  if  we  could  but  discover  it,  and  that 
this  best  is  determined  by  something  inherent  in  the 
nature  of  the  school  underlying  external  organization. 

It  thus  appears  that  the  established  order  is  not  the 
ethical  order.  The  fugitive  slave  law  is  rendered  null 
and  void  by  the  inner  law.  History  is  a  record  of  con- 
flicts between  the  ideal  and  inner  truth  of  things,  and 
external  forms  which  were  fixed  by  custom  and  law. 
There  is  a  perennial  strife  between  those  who  are  loyal 
to  forms  as  against  the  idea,  and  those  who  are  loyal  to 
the  idea  as  against  the  form.  There  are  those  who  seem 
to  think  that  the  external  condition  of  things  is  the  law, 
and  therefore  unassailable.  Especially  prone  to  hold  this 
view  are  those  who  are  a  part  of  the  fixed  system.  It 
seems  to  be  the  order,  when  a  school  system  becomes 
fixed  and  crystallized,  for  those  who  form  a  part  of  the 
system  to  plead  the  fixed  order  as  the  ethical  order,  and 
to  brand  as  iconoclasts  or  anarchists  those  who  hold  that 
the  idea  must  not  be  violated. 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  LAW.  9 

*'  Hence  every  moral  and  social  advance  has  to  fight  its 
way  not  merely  against  the  bad  who  oppose  all  order,  but 
against  the  traditionally  good,  who  believe  that  the  social 
order  is  constant,  and  that  what  has  been  the  ideal  adjust- 
ment in  the  past  must  remain  the  ideal  of  conduct  for  all 
time.  These  conscientious  but  short-sighted  conservatives 
are  always  more  bitter  and  powerful  opponents  of  the  new 
ideal  than  the  unprincipled  rabble.  The  worst  enemy  of 
the  better  is  the  good.  It  was  the  constituted  authorities, 
the  conservative  aristocracy  of  Athens,  not  the  lawless 
and  irreligious  masses,  who  condemned  Socrates  to  drink 
the  hemlock.  It  was  the  Scribes  and  the  Phai-isees  and 
the  chief  priests  and  the  principal  men  of  Jerusalem  who 
crucified  Jesus.  .  .  . 

"The  higher  form  of  this  struggle  comes  between  the 
law  as  the  representative  of  the  existing  order,  — or  rather 
of  the  order  which  existed  when  the  law  was  framed,  —  and 
the  individuals  who  see  the  vision  of  the  better  order  tliat 
is  about  to  be,  and  demand  institutions,  customs,  standards, 
duties,  liberties  large  enough  to  meet  the  requirement  of 
the  social  order  that  has  come  into  being  since  the  law  was 
made,  or  stands  ready  to  come  as  soon  as  the  hard  crust  of 
the  old  order  can  be  broken  so  as  to  give  the  new  life 
room.  Here  society  is  behind  the  individual,  and  is  trying 
to  hold  him  back.  Thus  the  average  good  man  is  equally 
at  war  with  the  bad  man  who  is  below  him,  ami  the  pro- 
gressively good  man  who  is  above  him.  The  reformer  and 
the  criminal  are  about  equally  obnoxious  to  the  man  of 
average  goodness  and  intelligence.     The  prophets  and  the 


10  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

betrayers  of  their  country  are  equally  odious,  and  promis- 
cuously stoned.  The  Saviour  is  crucified  between  two 
thieves."  ^ 

The  forms  through  which  life  realizes  itself,  whether 
school,  family,  society,  church,  or  state,  tend  to  fix  them- 
selves, and  to  check  the  life  which  grows  through  them. 
This  is  natural  and  inevitable.  A  considerable  part  of 
man's  effort  must  be  spent  in  readjusting  tlie  forms  of 
life  to  the  growing  conditions  of  life.  Man  lives  in 
advance  of  the  customs  of  society,  the  laws  of  the  state, 
the  creeds  of  the  church,  and  the  methods  and  statutes 
of  the  school.  When  the  tension  becomes  too  great,  as 
it  does  naturally  and  periodicuilly,  the  old  forms  must  be 
readjusted,  or  new  ones  substituted.  It  will  be  evolution 
or  revolution.  To  avoid  conflict  and  bondage,  forms 
should  grow  with  the  growing  life.  The  radical  sunders 
old  forms  before  the  life  is  ready  for  the  new;  the  con- 
servative clings  to  old  forms  after  they  are  outgrown;  the 
serpent  shows  more  wisdom  in  shedding  the  old  skin 
through  forming  the  new.  One  of  the  serious  problems 
of  school  management  is  how  to  shed  modes,  forms,  and 
customs  through  forming  the  new,  that  no  violence  may 
be  done  in  the  transition.  The  iconoclast  would  not  have 
to  break  our  idols,  and  with  them  our  faith,  if  he  would 
spend  his  time  in  preparing  us  to  worship  better  things. 
The  wisdom  of  the  serpent  in  these  matters  would  be  the 
harmlessness  of  the  dove. 

But  in  making  the  change  from  the    old  to  the  new, 

1  Social  Theology,  —  Dr.  Hyde. 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  LAW.  11 

what  is  and  what  has  been  in  external  organization,  while 
serving  as  a  basis  of  action,  can  never  be  the  advancing 
light  —  can  never  reveal  what  ought  to  be.  The  history 
of  education  is  usually  justified  in  a  teacher's  course,  on 
the  ground  that  in  knowing  what  has  been,  it  is  known 
what  ought  to  be.  But  the  history  of  education  cannot 
be  read  except  in  light  of  the  unrealized  ideal.  History 
shows  how  far  the  idea  has  succeeded  in  realizing  itself, 
and  this  is  vital  to  the  teacher;  but  to  learn  what  has 
been,  in  order  to  find  in  such  external  a  standard  for 
imitation,  is  the  servitude  of  form,  and  not  the  freedom 
of  an  idea.  The  best  text-book  on  a  given  subject  cannot 
be  made  by  averaging  texts  already  made;  and  the  best 
one  existing  cannot  be  excelled  witliout  recognizing  an 
ideal  beyond  anything  accomplished.  To  study  school 
systems  with  a  view  to  finding  a  standard  in  the  average 
best  tiling,  is  to  keep  the  standard  from  advancing.  If 
progress  is  to  be  made,  the  standard  must  be  created  and 
set  up  in  advance  of  anything  realized.  Kot  what  is, 
but  what  ought  to  be,  is  the  paramount  question.  The 
law  of  the  school  requires  that  the  teacher  struggle 
against  environment  and  existing  forms  to  a  fuller  reali- 
zation of  the  idea  than  has  yet  been  attained.  The 
strongest  tension  possible  must  be  maintained  up  to  the 
risk  of  breaking  with  the  forms  and  environment  in 
which  the  life  is  rooted.  This  law  of  school  life  is  tlie 
universal  law  of  living,  which  holds  that  the  real  must 
continually  yield  to  the  ideal  as  it  presses  onward  to 
realize  itself. 


12  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

This  tension  between  the  real  and  tlie  ideal  reveals 
itself  clearly  in  the  two  classes  of  educational  theorists 
and  practitioners:  those  who  construct  the  system  a 
priori,  and  those  who  construct  it  a  posteriori,  —  from  the 
causal  force  of  an  idea,  and  from  experience.  The  first, 
in  the  extreme  type,  ignore  the  concrete  conditions,  and 
build  an  educational  Utopia;  the  second,  in  the  extreme, 
see  nothing  but  the  concrete  fixed  conditions,  and  sink 
below  the  best  already  attained.  Of  the  first  type  there 
are  very  few;  and  even  their  mistakes  are  inspiringly 
helpful ;  of  the  second,  and  of  those  tending  that  way,  is 
the  great  body  of  the  profession,  and  with  them  rests  the 
professional  crimes  against  childhood.  The  crime  of  all 
crimes,  so  frequently  committed  by  teachers  and  super- 
intendents, is  that  of  comfortably  and  safely  adjusting 
to  existing  conditions  and  prevailing  sentiments  among 
those  for  whom  they  labor.  Whether  a  teacher  be  in- 
spired by  the  idea,  so  that  he  presses  onward  towards 
its  realization,  or  whether  simply  wise  in  harmoniously 
fitting  into  prevailing  modes  and  opinions,  determines, 
more  than  any  other  one  thing,  whether  he  bless  or  blight 
the  life  he  is  supposed  to  save.  It  is  worthy  of  note 
that  those  teachers  put  down  in  the  world's  history  for 
eminent  service  have  been  inspired  with  an  idea  which 
pressed  firmly  and  constantly  against  existing  conditions; 
while  others  have  gone  into  hibernation  to  spend  as 
securely  and  comfortably  as  possible  the  winter  of  their 
professional  lives.  Of  course  one  must  not  break  with 
his  environment,  for  to  do  so  would  be  to  lose  his  useful- 


THE   FUNDAMENTAL  LAW.  13 

ness;  but  if  he  levels  to  it,  he  has  no  usefulness  to  lose. 
What  needs  to  be  insisted  on  is  the  presence  of  an 
inner  law,  which  must  constantly  re-shape  and  mould  the 
external  condition  of  things,  on  the.  basis  of  the  existing 
condition  of  things.  Every  ideal  must  rise  upon  the  real 
to  which  it  is  in  bondage.  Outer  forms  and  laws  arc  but 
stepping-stones  of  the  living  idea,  which  constructs  for 
itself  new  stepping-stones  as  they  are  needed. 

Thus  the  broadest  requirement  made  by  tlie  funchi- 
mental  law  of  the  school  is  that  tlie  organization  be 
adjusted  to  the  demand  of  the  ideal;  that  it  never  be 
regarded  as  fixed  and  an  end;  but  that  it  be  a  perfect 
means  standing  between  ideal  purpose  and  instruction  on 
the  one  hand,  and  realized  instruction  and  purpose  on  the 
other, — the  teaching  process  in  idea,  and  the  teaching 
process  in  objective  realit3\  A  school  organization  is 
tested  by  ascertaining  how  fully  the  thought  and  purpose 
of  those  in  whom  the  organization  rests  has  been  realized 
by  its  agency.  Of  course  it  is  of  first  importance  to  have 
a  high  ideal  in  the  teaching  process;  but  this  ideal 
belongs  to  the  philosophy  of  teaching,  and  Ave  are  here 
concerned  only  with  its  ade(piate  realization  through  the 
school  as  an  external  means. 

Thus  the  real  school,  from  wliich  law  emanates,  is. mind 
in  effort  to  unfold  mind;  and  not  the  school-house  and 
appliances,  school  officers  and  school  law.  This  effort 
binds  into  a  school,  citizens,  parents,  officers,  teachers, 
and  pupils.  These  minds  may  not  be  actively  making 
such  effort  in  order  tliat  there  be  a  school,  but  they  must 


14  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

be  permanently  disposed  to  make  it.  The  school  exists 
during  vacation.  A  university  does  not  vanish  at  com- 
mencement. A  state  university  is  a  certain  disposition 
in  the  minds  of  the  state,  —  a  spiritual  power  to  act 
through  external  agencies  in  a  specified  process  of  instruc- 
tion. The  whole  external  organization  falls  to  pieces  in 
a  moment  when  such  disposition  is  withdrawn.  Then 
the  school-house  is  no  longer  a  school-house;  a  trustee 
no  longer  a  trustee;  the  teacher  ceases  to  be  a  teacher. 
Thus  again  it  appears  that  the  objective  school,  cut  loose 
from  its  spiritual  moorings,  vanishes.  This  cannot  be 
too  often  insisted  upon,  for  we  are  so  much  accustomed 
to  feel  that  the  external,  objective,  and  perhaps  material 
something  is  the  reality;  and  that  therefore  laws  and 
principles  of  operation  inhere  in  it,  and  are  to  be  deduced 
from  it.  We  are  quite  strictly  materialists  in  school 
management;  setting  objective  and  fixed  forms  and  rules 
hard  and  fast  over  against  a  growing  and  pulsating  life. 

Thus  the  broadest  aspect  of  the  law  of  unity  requires 
the  circle  from  the  ideal  through  the  external  organiza- 
tion to  the  real — the  life  circle  —  to  be  kept  intact;  that 
everything  in  the  external  organization  be  kept  in  move- 
ment to  the  realization  of  an  ideal;  that  the  end  always 
dominate  the  means  and  never  be  dominated  by  it.  In 
closest  statement  the  unity  is  that  of  the  ideal  and  the 
real;  and  the  meaning  of  the  law  is  that  the  external 
organization  must  be  true  to  this  unity,  and  not  set  up 
one  of  its  own. 

But  the  school  conceived  merely  as  "an  organic  spiritual 


Till-:    FUNDAMENTAL   LAW.  16 

unity"  is  too  vague  and  general  to  liave  working  value, 
and  must  be  reduced  to  lower  terms :  — 

In  the  Spiritual  Unity  of  Teacher  and  Pupil.  —  This 
seems  to  be  the  spiritual  centre  out  of  which  issues  all 
law,  and  to  wliicli  all  instrumentalities  co-operate;  for  it 
is  here  that  the  miracle  of  changing  the  ideal  into  the 
real  is  wrought.  The  co-operation  of  these  two  factors 
accomplishes  the  end  for  which  the  whole  system  exists. 
Teacher  and  pupil,  in  co-operative  touch  to  the  end  for 
which  the  school  exists,  of  themselves  constitute  the 
school.  A  thumb-bell  may  be  a  ])art  of  the  organiza- 
tion ;  but  the  change  from  the  ideal  to  the  real  is  not  in 
its  co-operation  with  any  other  organ.  The  change  can 
take  place,  and  the  school  can  exist  without  it.  A 
clock  and  a  blackboard  may  be  parts  of  the  school 
machinery;  but  the  teaching  process  can  go  on  witliout 
them,  and  the  school  is  not  destroyed  by  their  removal. 
The  co-operation  of  the  school-house  is  not  the  tcacliing 
process,  and  the  school  can  exist  with  a  Mark  Ilojikins 
on  one  end  of  a  log  and  a  Garfield  on  the  other.  Drawing 
more  nearly  to  the  school,  and  yet  the  teaching  jtrocess  can 
exist  without  gymnasium,  laboratory,  or  library.  The  co- 
operation of  neither  of  these  with  any  other  constitutes  the 
process,  and  the  efficiency  of  tlie  organization  cannot  be 
tested  therein.  Director,  trustee,  county  superintendent, 
state  superintendent,  and  national  commissioner  of  educa- 
tion are  useful  members,  but  the  school  can  exist  in  idea,  as 
it  has  done  in  fact,  without  them.  The  co-operation  of  either 
of  them  with  any  other  factor  is  not  the  teaching  process, 


16  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

and  a  school  system  cannot  be  tested  in  the  work  of 
either.  It  would  at  first  seem  that  if  the  public  fund  and 
tax-payer  were  removed ,  the  bottom  would  fall  out  of  the 
institution;  but  it  is  not  so.  School  must  keep;  the 
sentiment  is  too  deeply  rooted  to  be  baffled  by  trifling 
inconveniences  through  lack  of  organized  fund,  or  hie- 
rarchy of  officers,  or  school-house  with  all  the  wealth  of 
modern  appliances.  Even  if  the  parent  were  removed, 
the  school  would  still  operate;  for  a  time,  at  least;  as  long 
as  necessary. 

But  the  process  vanishes  if  either  teacher  or  pupil  be 
dropped.  These  two  in  co-operative  unity  constitute  a 
school,  and  the  law  is  to  be  tested  in  their  organic  unit}-. 
All  other  parts  of  the  organism  work  their  way  down  to 
this  unity  through  these  tAvo  factors.  The  prolonged  and 
heroic  effort  States  have  made  in  organizing  a  school  fund 
is  to  bring  teacher  and  pupil  together  under  the  most 
favorable  conditions  of  co-operation.  The  Commissioner 
of  Education  must  find  his  way  through  the  long  line  of 
forces  down  to  the  touch  of  teacher  with  pupil.  Library, 
laboratory,  and  gymnasium  are  but  unifying  agencies 
between  teacher  and  pupil;  and  the  value  of  thumb-bell 
or  clock,  eraser  or  wall  map,  is  tested  by  the  influence 
exerted  on  the  unity  of  teacher  with  pupil.  Thus  the 
school  is  quite  a  complex,  but  closely  integrated,  process. 
Every  act  performed,  however  remote,  finds  its  way  to 
the  unity  described;  and  is  there  tested.  When  the 
director  fails  to  supply  good  fuel,  or  the  trustee  a  good 
blackboard,  the  unity  is  weakened.      When  the   county 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  LAW.  17 

superintendent  gives  license  to  a  teacher,  or  a  trustee 
selects  one,  the  value  of  the  act  will  be  tested  in  the 
unity  of  teacher  and  pupil  in  the  teaching  act.  The  State 
Superintendent  renders  a  decision,  and  it  ultimately  shows 
y  itself  in  the  concrete  teaching  process,  —  in  the  unity  of  "> 
mind  with  mind  in  the  teaching  act.  The  teacher  fails 
to  prepare  the  lesson,  and  the  detrimental  result  is  found 
when  his  mind  fails  to  come  into  unity  with  that  of  the 
pupil  on  the  topic  under  consideration. 

Behavior  or  conduct  in  school,  whether  on  tlie  part 
of  the  teacher,  parent,  pupil,  or  school  officer,  is  the  way 
one  bears  himself  in  reference  to  this  vital  touch  of  mind 
with  mind  in  the  act  of  instruction.  A  right  act  in 
school  is  one  which  secures,  or  tends  to  secure,  unity 
between  the  mind  of  the  teacher  and  the  ]iui)il  in  the 
teaching  process;  while  a  wrong  act  is  one  which  destroys, 
or  tends  to  destroy,  such  unity.  School  management  is 
the  process  l)y  which  all  the  acts  of  all  tlic  agents  con- 
stituting the  organism  are  brought  into  the  unity  of  the 
one  act  above  described.  The  law  of  the  school,  there- 
fore, as  an  external  organism,  requires  unity  to  the  vital 
centre  of  its  manifold  and  complex  parts.  Thus,  besides 
the  school  process  as  a  whole,  as  at  first  described,  and 
of  which  the  external  organization  is  a  link,  there  is 
another  organic  process  in  the  objective  school, — a  work- 
ing together  of  all  its  complex  parts  to  a  point  in  the 
school  process  as  a  whole. 

The  character  of  the  unity  between  teacher  and  pupil 
further  specifics  the  law.      The  two  art-  imh-   in   tlir  tt  ai-li- 


18  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

ing  process;  for  in  teaching,  whatever  tliought,  sentiment, 
or  resolution  the  teacher  would  stimulate  in  the  pupil's 
mind,  he  must  first  have  in  his  own  consciousness.  While 
causing  the  pupil  to  think  the  colors  of  the  rainbow,  tlie 
teacher  must  think  them;  and  if  the  pupil's  heart  is  to 
leap  up  when  he  beholds  "a  rainbow  in  the  sky,"  the 
teacher's  must  leap  with  it.  And  the  resolution  and 
tendency  to  higher  life  expected  in  the  pupil  from  the 
rainbow  study  m.ust  be  the  resolution  and  tendency  of  his 
own  life  under  that  study.  Thus,  in  all  teaching  there 
is  a  point  of  identity  of  consciousness  between  teacher 
and  pupil.  This  identity  of  consciousness  is  the  centre 
of  the  system,  and  it  is  this  which  management  is  to 
secure.  Suppose  the  teacher,  in  teaching  "Paul  Kevere's 
Ride,"  be  in  the  inspired  mood  to  which  his  pupil  is  to 
be  brought,  good  management  will  bring  the  pupil  into 
unity  with  the  teacher's  inspiration;  and  the  extent  to 
which  the  pupil  falls  short,  barring  the  question  of  his 
ability,  must  be  put  to  the  score  of  bad  management 
somewhere  in  the  system.  At  the  moment  of  that  effort 
on  the  part  of  the  teacher,  the  whole  school  system,  out 
to  its  remotest  limits,  stands  pledged  to  the  unity  of 
inspiration  of  teacher  and  pupil  in  the  poem  under  con- 
sideration. The  tax-payer  is  toiling  for  it;  the  Com- 
missioner of  Education  is  issuing  his  report  to  that 
end;  the  State  Superintendent  is  interpreting  the  law  to 
strengthen  the  work  in  hand;  the  county  superintendent 
is  issuing  orders  for  the  good  of  the  cause  ;  and  the 
school-house,    with    its    library,    gymnasium,    wall-map^ 


THE   FUNDAMKNTAL  LAW.  19 

blackboard,  crayon,  pointer,  and  eraser,  marshals  all  its 
forces  to  the  issue.  The  stove,  the  desks,  the  table, 
the  curtains  at  the  window,  —  all  are  focusing  their 
energy  at  the  moment  to  bring  the  pupil's  inspiration 
up  to  that  of  the  teacher's.  Even  the  Governor  and  tlie 
President  of  the  United  States  stand  in  constant  and  vital 
touch  with  the  effort  to  arouse  the  pupil  to  the  level  of 
the  teacher.  Thus,  at  any  moment,  the  school  consists 
of  the  active,  imrposed  influences  which  combine  to  draw 
tlie  pupil  into  unity  with  the  teacher  in  tlie  teaching 
act.  Again  the  school  appears  not  to  be  a  fixed  some- 
thing, but  a  living,  moving  thing  in  the  process  of 
realizing  an  idea.  The  school  is  a  complex  of  functions, 
bringing  teacher  and  pupil  into  co-operation. 

]^)Ut  while  in  the  teaching  act  tliere  is  a  point  of 
identity  between  teacher  and  pujjil,  there  is  the  import- 
ant difference  which  makes  the  act  of  one  teaching  and 
that  of  tlie  other  learning.  They  are  really  thinking  about 
different  things.  The  point  of  subject-matter  in  which 
the  two  are  to  unite  is  ohi  to  the  teacher;  and  at  the 
time  merely  repi'0(lnn'(l  in  idea  in  order  to  awaken  the 
same  in  the  mind  of  tlie  pupil.  The  teacher  in  the  act 
of  teaching  is  really  tli inking  of  the  pupil's  experience, 
while  the  pupil  is  tliinking  about  the  subject  under  con- 
sidei'ation.  The  subjcot  being  old  to  tlie  tcadu  r,  and 
merely  reproduced  in  idea  to  guide  in  stimulating  the 
pupil  to  realize  the  same,  the  teacher  turns  his  effort  to 
the  experience  of  the  pupil  in  the  act  of  learning;  and 
with  this  further  dilTerence,  that  the  teacher  is  conscious 


20  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

of  the  value  of  the  experience  of  the  pupil  in  terms  of 
his  unfolding  life.  What  the  teacher  should  be  really 
conscious  of  is  the  process  of  growth  on  the  part  of  tlie 
pupil  in  the  act  of  fostering  it.  In  teaching,  the  true 
teacher  lives  in  the  life  of  tlie  pupil.  If  each  lesson 
does  not  change  the  life  of  the  pupil,  no  reason  can  be 
assigned  for  giving  it;  and  if  this  be  true,  the  teacher 
must  be  conscious  of  the  change  made  in  the  act  of  mak- 
ing it;  or  the  blind  will  be  leading  the  blind.  Hence 
the  teacher  must  hold  the  pupil's  life  in  his  grasp  in 
each  act  of  teaching,  —  his  whole  life,  for  each  lesson 
touches  it  from  its  centre  to  its  circumference.  Now, 
this  good  of  life,  immediate  and  remote,  the  pupil  cannot 
be  conscious  of;  if  so,  he  could  be  his  own  teacher.  In 
teaching,  then,  the  pupil  puts  his  effort  on  the  subject- 
matter,  while  the  teacher  puts  his  effort  on  the  growing 
life  of  the  pupil,  through  his  experiences  with  the  subject- 
matter.  The  teacher  holds  in  idea  the  aim,  and  the 
experiences  by  which  the  aim  is  realized;  and  at  the 
same  time  the  pupil  has  the  real  experiences  and  thus 
realizes  the  aim.  Thus  we  have  reached  the  point  where 
the  miracle  is  wrought,  —  the  change  from  the  ideal  to 
the  real,  for  which  the  organized  system  stands.  And 
thus,  too,  while  drawing  differences  between  teacher  and 
pupil,  we  have  reached  a  more  fundamental  likeness,  — 
a  likeness  in  purpose  and  effort,  which  combine  the  two 
into  the  unity  which  makes  the  school.  We  have  already 
seen  that  these  two  factors  are  the  essential  ones  in  the 
school  process;    that  they   really  constitute  the   school. 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL   LAW.  21 

They  form  the  school  in  the  unity  of  jmrpose  and  effort 
to  realize  the  life  of  the  pupil.  Consciously  or  uncon- 
sciously, the  pujiil  is  making  an  effort  to  realize  his  pos- 
sibilities, and  tlie  teacher  is  uniting  with  him  in  tlie  effort. 
In  this  unity  of  effort  of  the  two  we  liave  the  school  in 
its  simplest  and  most  concrete  form;  but  in  tlie  larger 
sense,  the  school  consists  of  all  the  minds  making  effort 
with  the  pupil  in  his  development.  Thus  it  appears 
again  that  the  school  is  a  spiritual  unity,  consisting  of 
minds  in  effort  to  unfold  mind.  Minds  permanently 
disposed  to  make  such  effort  is  the  school,  in  repose 
or  quiescent;  but  when  the  effort  is  active,  we  have  the 
school  in  process. 

But  in  all  this  the  teacher,  while  not  vanishing,  as  did 
the  thumb-ljell,  is  reduced  to  the  secondary  position  of 
instrument;  and  in  last  analysis  we  are  forced  to  locate 
the  law  simply :  — 

Within  the  Spiritual  Unity  of  the  Pupil  Himself.  — 
This  is  the  unity  of  the  pupil's  real  and  ideal  self;  or 
rather,  the  school  is  the  tension  between  the  two.  Reach- 
ing inward  through  all  the  forms  and  process  of  the  com- 
plex school  system,  this  tensit)n  is  found  as  the  last  and 
the  abiding  force;  and  moving  outward  from  this  centre, 
it  may  be  seen  determining  and  drawing  all  instrumen- 
talities to  the  infinite  work  of  releasing  the  tension,  which 
is  constantly  renewed.  The  student,  direc^tly  oi-  in- 
directly, consciously  or  unconsciousl}',  creates  the  school 
as  external  organization.  This  is  quite  obvious  in  the 
case  of  mature  students.      The  first  schools  were   made 


22  SCHOOL   MANAOKMENT. 

by  the  students  themselves.  Schools  for  children  came 
later,  and  were  created  in  sympathy  for  them, — created 
as  they  would  have  done  for  themselves,  had  they  been 
conscious  of  their  needo.  In  any  case  it  is  the  student 
who  virtually  organizes  instrumentalities  for  his  own 
development.  Those  who  join  with  liim  in  effort  are  only 
instrumentally  connected;  they  are  not  the  primary 
motive  in  the  process.  When  a  university  is  founded, 
it  is  on  the  assumption  of  a  basis  in  the  purpose,  latent 
or  active,  in  a  number  who  are  striving  for  improvement. 
Students  might  create,  support  and  manage  the  institu- 
tion by  which  they  themselves  are  taught,  as  is  done  in 
a  church  by  its  members.  In  this  case  it  is  evident  that 
the  spirit  of  the  student  is  the  basis  of  the  school;  but 
it  is  no  less  so  when  they  accept  agencies  prepared  on  the 
assumption  that  they  will  make  those  agencies  their  own. 

And  here  we  have  come  upon  the  most  specific  and 
vital  principle  of  school  management,  —  one  which  must 
be  carried  forward  throughout  the  discussion.  A  school 
is  firmly  grounded  when  it  is  conscious  of  itself,  if  we 
may  think  of  it  so. — that  is,  when  the  objective  school 
is  held  by  the  pupil  as  arising  out  of  his  own  life;  when 
seen  as  truly  himself,  and  not  the  will  of  another;  when 
he  does  not  feel  that  it  is  something  set  over  against 
himself,  but  that  it  is  hiuiself  projected  in  that  form  for 
his  own  self-realization.  This  means  that  school  adminis- 
tration should  be  entirely  democratic;  that  is,  no  arbi- 
trary will  must  displace  the  pupil's  obedience  to  himself 
as  objectified  in  the  school.     At  first,  of  course,  he  may 


THE   FUNDAMENTAL   LAW.  23 

not  be  able  to  see  liiinself  as  the  law,  except  in  detail; 
but  to  gradually  reveal  the  fact  to  him  that  he  is  the 
school,  to  which  his  conduct  must  conform,  is  the  very 
triumph  of  management.  The  school  is  never  stable 
unless  it  rests  in  the  pupil's  adoption  of  it  as  his  law; 
in  tliis  the  school  has  its  fullest  and  firmest  reality. 

It  is  obvious  from  the  foregoing  that  the  worst  stroke 
of  management  imaginable  is  one  which  assails  the  reality 
of  the  school;  and  it  usuall}'  takes  this  shape.  Tlie 
teacher,  or  it  may  be  those  administering  affairs,  says 
to  pui)ils,  in  W(n(l  or  bearing,  "I  am  running  an  institu- 
tion here,  of  wliich  you  are  members  by  grace.  Yes, 
come  to  think  of  it,  I  am  really  glad  of  your  presence, 
and  will  take  it  as  a  personal  favor  for  you  to  patronize 
my  establishment,  for  by  this  I  gain  my  livelihood.  Of 
course,  I  will  expect  to  recompense  you  with  whatever 
favors  I  maybe  able  to  bestow,  —  such  as  securing  posi- 
tions in  store  or  workshop;  and  it  may  be  that  if  you 
remain  long  enough,  and  make  the  obligation  great 
enough,  I  may  reward  you  with  a  position  in  my  school, 
to  which  you  will  have  been  so  disinterestedly  loyal. 
But  if  there  is  disorder  here, — if  you- in  any  way  inter- 
fere with  the  smooth  running  of  my  business,  —  beware 
of  my  right  arm.  All  rights,  privileges,  and  immunities 
are  vested  in  me;  I  make  and  execute  the  law.  \\'lien 
you  touch  tlie  school,  you  touch  my  personal  affairs. 
Beware,  I  say;  vengeance  is  mine."  In  this  attitude  r 
school  may  be  crushed  into  seeming  good  order,  but  h 
is  the  worst  of  disorder;    not  only  because  students  and 


24  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

teacher  are  sundered,  but  because  the  organization  is 
shifted  from  its  real  basis,  and  tlie  unity  of  the  student's 
life  with  it  is  broken. 

From  this  it  must  not  be  inferred  that  the  management 
of  the  school  must  be  turned  over  to  the  whims  and 
caprices  of  the  students,  but  that  all  things  be  done  from 
the  standpoint  that  the  student,  constantly  setting  up 
ill  thought  the  organization  for  his  own  development,  is 
the  school.  Hence,  negatively,  manageinent  must  do 
nothing  to  forbid  the  pupil  from  projecting  his  own 
rational  nature  as  the  school;  and,  positively,  must  do 
everything  possible  to  enable  the  pupil  to  see  the  school 
as  his  own  life,  and  to  render  obedience  to  its  laws  as  to 
the  laws  of  his  own  nature.  The  citizen  reads  the  enact- 
ment of  the  state  against  theft,  and  discerns  in  it  nothing 
but  the  requirement  of  his  own  nature,  and  renders 
obedience  to  it  as  his  true  self  objectified.  In  this  atti- 
tude he  is  free,  for  he  renders  obedience  only  to  himself; 
whereas,  if  the  law  is  something  foreign  to  him,  and  thus 
imposed  upon  him,  he  is  a  slave  to  external  requirement. 
The  free  citizen,  the  free  state,  the  free  country,  mean 
only  the  freedom  of  self-obedience  of  the  subject,  —  the 
obedience  of  the  self  to  the  larger  self,  —  the  state. 
Every  individual  in  the  state  must  come  at  last  to  say, 
with  more  commendable  pride  than  Louis  XIV.,  "I  am 
the  state."  The  best  state  policy  is  not  that  which 
adjusts  the  tariff,  but  that  which  makes  every  individual 
conscious  of  statehood. 

And  thus  the  student  reads  the  law  of  the  school  against 


THE   FUNDAMENTAL   LAW.  25 

truancy  and  the  like,  and  should  see  these  as  nothing  but 
the  requirements  of  his  own  nature,   as   his  own    school 
life,  and  render  obedience  to  them  as  his  own  true   self. 
It  may  be  good,  but  it  cannot  be  best,  for  a  pupil  to  obey 
his  teacher.     It  is  a  false  assumption  that  he  is  predis- 
posed to  disobey  the  requirements  of  the  school,  and  that 
external   authority  must  enter  at    once   on    the   work   of 
suppression.      The  main   line   of    work   running   through 
the  management  of  a  school  is  that  of  developing  in  the 
thought  of   the  pupil   the   laws  which  are  in  the  school 
because  of  his  membership  in  it.     This  does  not  require 
a  logical  exposition  of  the  theory  of  the  school,  but  the 
laws  are  to  be  made  to  appear  through  the  concrete  situa- 
tions of  school  life.      Consultation,  formal  or  informal, 
on  special  interests  and  phases  of  conduct,  is  the  effective 
means,   even   with   a   class   of   youngest   students.      Tlie 
mere  compliment  of  recognition  forestalls  opposition  and 
outbreak.     But  tlie  best  result  is  not  the  mere  matter  of 
order,  but  the  ethical  value  to  tlie  student:    he   becomes 
a  student  of  conduct;  he  is  finding  the  law  of  conduct  in 
particular  cases,  and  gradually,  as  he  is  able,  generalizes 
them  into  the   law   of  school  conduct;    and  tlirough  this 
the  laws  of   conduct   at   large  will  be   revealed   to  Iiim. 
And  more,  it  is  not  merely  a  perception  of  law,  but  tliere 
is  an   habitual    practice   under  the    law;    not   merely  his 
expanding  theory  of  ethical  conduct,  but  liis  expanding 
free  and  virtuous  life  under   tliat  tlieory.      He  is  imme- 
diately and  directly  involved  in  every  case;  and  it  becomes 
a  question  of  his  own  practice,  and  not  a  sclieme  to  apply 


26  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

to  others.  No  amount  of  moral  teaching  in  school  can 
be  as  effective  as  a  rational  practice  of  school  management. 
By  it  the  school  is  not  only  made  more  real  and  secure, 
and  the  immediate  condition  for  instruction  provided,  but 
the  pupil  is  thereby  brought  to  the  habit  of  rational  self- 
control,  the  end  of  all  ends  in  school  work.  We  should 
expect,  of  course,  that,  if  the  thing  be  done  fundamentally 
right,  harmony  must  reign  throughout;  and  that  in  thus 
securing  one  end  all  other  ends  will  be  added. 

Instead,  therefore,  of  all  the  agencies  in  the  school 
system  simply  co-operating  to  the  unity  of  teacher  and 
pupil,  the  co-operation  centres  in  the  pupil,  —  in  the  unity 
between  the  pupil's  real  and  his  ideal  self.  Hence  the 
teacher,  who  even  stands  in  vital  touch  with  the  pupil, 
cannot  give  law  to  the  school.  It  has  already  been  de- 
veloped and  stated  on  page  7  "  that  the  fundamental  law 
controlling  the  school  as  an  external  organization  cannot 
be  dictated  by  that  organization;  "  and  now  it  seems 
that  the  teacher  is  a  part  of  that  external  organization. 
Teachers,  principals,  and  superintendents,  stand  in  such 
immediate  and  vital  relation  to  the  process  that  it  is 
dangerously  easy  for  them  to  assume  arbitrarily  the  law- 
giving function,  and  difficult  for  them  to  subject  themselves 
as  means  to  the  child  as  an  end.  This  is  the  law  of  justice 
in  the  school,  and  is  based  on  the  same  distinction  as  that 
which  Plato,  through  tlie  character  of  Socrates,  urges  on 
the  sophist  in  searching  for  the  nature  of  justice.  The 
sophist  had  declared  justice  to  be  the  interest  of  the 
stronger;    but  Plato  urged  that  justice  always  considers 


THE   FUNDAMENTAL  LAW.  27 

the  interest  of  the  weaker.  He  olainied  that  a  shejilierd, 
in  the  character  of  a  shepherd,  conducts  himself  with 
reference  to  the  Avelfare  of  his  sheep,  and  not  in  the 
interest  of  the  shepherd;  that  a  physician,  as  a  physician, 
is  guided  by  the  welfare  of  his  patif^nt,  and  that  in  so  far 
as  lie  is  guided  by  money  interests,  lie  is  a  business  man 
and  not  physician;  that  a  governor  of  a  State,  in  the 
character  of  governor,  must  act  with  sole  reference  to  the 
welfare  of  his  subjects.  The  teacher,  too,  has  a  business 
sid(^;  but  in  so  far  as  he  is  teacher,  his  conduct  must  be 
regulated  entirely  b}-  the  welfare  of  his  pupil,  and  the 
welfare  of  the  same  pupil  must  control  wholly  the  C(-)nduct 
of  su])eriutend(Mit  and  trustt>e,  in  the  character  of  super- 
intendent and  trustee.  This  ti'uth  is  so  obvious  that  it 
seems  useless  to  discuss  it;  yet  this  is  the  criminal  jioint 
in  practice,  and  the  law  quite  commonly  violated,  for  the 
motive  of  self-interest  on  the  part  of  the  teacher  or  officer, 
confronts  the  interest  of  the  impil.  The  self-interest  of 
those  in  the  organization  to  whom  the  welfare  of  the 
child  is  intrusted  is  the  most  formidable  obstacle  to  the 
law  of  the  school.  When  some  township  trustees  used 
school  money  for  their  own  private  ends,  they  were 
pro])erly  branded  criminnls;  and  they  fled  before  the  hot 
wrath  of  an  outraged  publir  to  the  cooler  and  more  con- 
genial clime  of  ("niiada.  I'.ut  their  crime  consisted  in 
nothing  mor(>  Mian  in  sliortening  the  school  term,  and 
thus  preventing  so  nnich  o])portu!iitv  on  tlie  part  of  the 
child.  Was  there  anytljing  more  in  this  crinu-  than  the 
preference  of  self,   as  trustee,  to  the  child?      Then  what 


28  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

an  alarming  host  of  criminals  in  scliool  work!  Have  you 
forgotten  that  other  trustee,  who,  to  wield  local  influences 
to  his  own  interests,  dropped  a  true  and  tried  teacher  of 
valuable  experience  for  the  doubtful  and  untried  one? 
In  both  the  child  was  not  consulted,  and  its  interests 
were  ignored;  both  robbed  the  child.  The  latter  may 
even  have  done  so  much  more  effectively  than  the  former, 
through  incompetency  and  the  dwarfing  influences  of  bad 
teaching.  Yet  the  form  of  their  crime  was  so  different 
that  one  remains  an  honored  citizen,  while  the  others  are 
the  subjects  of  contempt  and  ignominy.  Both  robbed  the 
child,  and  in  this  were  equally  criminal.  AVhat  we  need 
is  a  quickened  school-conscience  to  see  it  so.  When- 
ever a  city  superintendent  chooses  the  poorer  of  two  teach- 
ers because  of  friendship,  or  to  stand  in  with  certain 
influences,  he  could  not  rob  the  child  more  effectively 
by  putting  his  hand  into  the  treasury,  and  ought  to  be 
hooted  to  Canada  to  keep  company  Avith  his  brethren. 
And  so  ought  the  teacher  who,  for  selfisli  reasons,  forgets 
the  child  in  his  eagerness  for  popularity,  that  he  may 
control  influences  which  make  his  calling  and  election 
sure.  When  Lincoln,  at  a  critical  period  in  the  war, 
desired  to  make  a  call  for  soldiers,  he  was  reminded  by 
the  politicians  that  he  was  a  candidate  for  re-election  to 
the  presidency,  and  that  such  a  call  would  weaken  his 
prospect.  With  characteristic  devotion,  he  replied  that 
it  was  not  necessary  for  him  to  be  re-elected  to  the  presi- 
dency, but  that  it  was  necessary  to  save  the  Union 
unbroken  to   the   next    man   who   filled  the   presidential 


THE  FUNDAMENTAL  LAW.  29 

chair.      Such  must  be  the  spirit  of  the  true  teacher, — 
self-forgetful  devotion  to  those  whom  he  serves. 

The  other  danger  is  that  of  forgetting  the  child  in  the 
movement  of  the  complicated  machinery.  The  central 
process  in  the  pupil  must  command  all  the  external  and 
remote  appliances  and  processes;  but  it  is  uniformly  true, 
and  it  seems  necessarily  so,  tliat  the  teacher,  before 
reaching  his  freedom  in  the  central  law  of  the  school, 
must  pass  through  some  form  of  bondage  to  the  machinery 
which  conditi(jus  his  labor.  All  in  all,  the  school  is 
quite  a  complex  piece  of  machinery.  There  are  manifold 
processes  to  be  performed  aside  from  the  central  one. 
Teachers  must  be  examined,  the  coal  bought,  the  house 
cleaned,  the  record  kept,  classes  called,  and  questions 
asked, — a  manifold  process  so  absorbing  in  variety  and 
interests  of  detail,  so  overshadowing  the  little  silent 
process  wherein  the  miracle  is  wrought,  that  the  external 
means  become  an  end  in  the  consciousness  of  those  wlio 
teach  and  manage.  Machinery  there  must  be.  There 
must  be  laws  for  raising  revenue,  a  school  system,  school 
officers,  and  similar  instrumentalities.  The  record  of  our 
early  struggle  to  secure  a  school  fund  and  a  school  system 
is  a  most  worthy  one;  but  it  sometimes  seems  that  the 
greater  emphasis  given  to  the  system,  the  more  danger 
there  is  of  forgetting  the  child.  It  sometimes  becomes 
a  question  whether  the  cliild  can  survive  the  machine. 
We  have  just  i)ridc  in  our  success  in  grading  schools;  but 
who  has  not  been  pained  by  tlie  fact  tliat  the  grading 
often   becomes   the    end,   and   the   child    crushed    in   the 


30  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

process.  It  often  liappens  that  more  discussion  turns 
about  grading  than  about  the  thing  really  to  be  done. 
There  cannot  be  good  schools  without  good  grading,  but 
a  very  poor  school  may  be  found  Avliere  tliere  is  good 
grading.  Scarcely  anything  pertinent  is  said  in  boasting 
of  such  things.  If  the  contrivance  is  good,  let  it  be 
spoken  of  in  terms  of  the  teaching  act.  No  appliance  is 
good  so  long  as  it  is  used  as  an  end.  All  appliances  are 
good  when  subordinated  to  their  proper  relation  and 
work.  One  of  the  most  interesting  and  difficult  prob- 
lems for  the  superintendent  of  a  school,  or  a  system  of 
schools,  whether  city,  state,  or  county,  is  to  find  his  way 
to  the  pupil  through  the  complex  machinery  with  which 
he  necessarily  labors.  The  teacher  finds  liis  way  directly, 
the  superintendent  indirectly;  but  he  must  find  his  way, 
or  he  is  not  a  superintendent.  His  life  must  touch  the 
child,  notwithstanding  the  many  agencies  that  intervene. 
The  long  line  of  appliances  and  forces  standing  between 
him  and  the  child  are  there  only  as  a  means  by  which  he 
can  reach  the  many;  and  if  he  gets  himself  tangled  up 
in  the  machinery,  he  may  not  reach  the  child  till  too  late 
for  the  rescue. 

Thus  W8  have  reached  the  simple  but  potent  truth  that 
the  general  law  of  unity  of  the  organism  which  controls 
the  whole  complex  school  sj'stem  reduces  itself  in  last 
analysis  to  the  unity  of  the  pupil's  ideal  and  real  self. 
This  is  the  unity  which  must  never  be  violated,  and  which 
the  whole  system  stands  pledged  to  maintain.  In  all 
questions  of  school  organization  and  management  this  is 
the  court  of  ultimate  appeal. 


THE   FUNDAMENTAL   LAW.  31 

This  ultimati'  l;i\v  of  tlio  school  api)oars  the  more 
authoritative  when  we  reflect  on  wliat  has  been  imjilied 
throughout,  and  incidentally  suggested  many  times; 
namely,  that  the  law  of  the  school  organization  is  the 
law  of  all  organizations  wliatevor,  whether  spiritual  or 
physical.  The  law  applies  to  the  i]lant  and  tlie  animal, 
to  the  church  and  the  state,  as  well  as  to  the  school.  Of 
course  the  nu^chanism,  as  the  watch,  differs;  for  in  such 
the  law  is  externally  imposed.  But  a  mechanism  is  but 
a  means,  a  })hase,  in  an  organism,  and  is  contrived  and 
operatt'd  under  the  same  law, —  which  law  W(»rks  from 
without.  In  all  cases  the  law  ruling  the  world  is  the 
tension  of  the  ideal  ami  the  real,  —  the  striving  for  unity, 
peace,  and  harnuuiy.  The  real  gives  the  law  of  tiaitli, 
and  we  affirm  what  a  thing  is;  the  ideal  proclaims  the 
law  of  duty,  and  we  affirm  what  a  thing  ought  to  be; 
having  the  unity  of  the  two,  we  announce  the  thing 
beautiful.  ]>ut  a  thing  really  is  not  until  it  is  what  it 
owy/i^  to  be,  and  then  it  is  beautiful;  hence  truth,  beauty, 
and  virtue  are  phases  of  the  woi-M's  movement  under  the 
tension  of  the  real  and  the  ideal,  —  the  ultimate  energy  to 
wliicli  tliought  can  penetrate. 

All  institutions  arise  under  this  strain  of  ethical  im- 
pulse which,  reduced  to  its  lowest  terms,  means  the  unity 
of  the  ideal  and  the  real  self;  all  are  processes  of  self- 
realization.  Tlio  many-sidedness  of  life  rnrpiires  different 
methods  of  work,  and  hence  different  organizations;  but 
whatever  the  variety  of  leverage  required,  the  ultimate 
aim   and   law   of   all    institutions,  whether    industrial    or 


32  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

sacred,  is  the  same.  All  days  are  lioly,  all  work  sacred., 
all  institutions  divine.  Whatever  difference  there  may 
be  between  a  book  on  school  management  and  one  on  the 
management  of  any  other  organization  is  only  a  difference 
in  details.  Wliile  we  often  try  to  define  the  school  as 
distinct  from  the  other  institutions,  it  is  much  more 
helpful,  because  more  fundamental,  to  see  how  it  is  in 
unity  with  every  other.  A  difference  is  always  at  least 
one  remove  less  fundamental  than  a  likeness. 

From  one  standpoint  the  school  is  an  offshoot  and 
enlargement  of  the  family,  seeking  by  more  effective 
means  to  accomplish  the  same  result,  —  the  nurture  of 
the  child  into  the  highest  type  of  man  or  woman.  As 
such,  its  law  must  be  the  same  as  that  of  the  family. 
From  another  view  the  school  is  but  a  specialized  function 
of  the  industrial  world,  — an  effective  means  to  physical 
comfort  and  happiness  through  the  knowledge  and  virtue 
which  form  the  basis  of  the  industrial  system.  But  the 
industrial  world  seeks  more  than  mere  animal  welfare? 
—  it  is  moved  by  blind  impulse  or  conscious  law  to  the 
spiritual  good  of  man;  and  in  this  the  law  of  the  school 
is  the  same  as  the  law  of  the  shop.  In  still  another 
aspect  the  school  is  a  function  of  the  state,  whose  sole 
aim  is  to  harmonize  in  justice  the  aggregate  efforts  of  all 
organizations  in  their  working  to  realize  the  supreme 
good  of  life.  The  school,  by  developing  intelligence  and 
ethical  virtues,  grounds  the  state  firmly,  and  in  return 
is  organized  and  supported  to  make  its  contribution  to 
the  common   cause  of  human  welfare.      It  gives  and  it 


THE   FUNDAMENTAL   LAW.  33 

receives  J  it  supports  and  is  supported;  but  all  this  is 
but  one  complex  effort  to  realize  tlie  ideal  of  life.  Self- 
realization  is  the  law  of  both  school  and  state.  The 
church  organizes  its  forces  about  the  relation  of  man  to 
his  Maker,  and  strives  to  make  man  perfect,  even  as  his 
Father  in  lieaven  is  perfect;  but  it  has  always  made  the 
school  its  intimate  ally  in  every  work  of  regeneration. 
The  problem  of  both  church  and  school  is  to  bring  man 
ultimately  into  unity  with  his  destiny,  —  the  ultimate 
ideal  of  the  human  soul.  The  school  is  a  religious  insti- 
tution; certainly  so  in  its  historical  origin,  and  no  less 
so  in  its  ultimate  aim.* 

And  thus  all  institutions  arise  out  of  the  same  truth; 
namely,  that  man  seeks  another  self.  Xo  one  gives  law 
to  the  others;  they  are  all  ways  of  working  out  the  same 
problem, — ways  growing  out  of  the  many-sidedness  of 
the  individual.  All  institutions  arise  out  of  the  nature 
of  the  life  of  the  individual,  and  must  return  to  that  life; 
all  are  but  methods  of  realizing  the  value  of  human  life 
in  the  individual.  This  is  the  simple  law  of  the  great 
complex  social  whole.  Social  science  seeks  but  the 
formula  by  which  the  complex  forces  in  the  aggregate 
of  human  life  best  work  in  unity  to  the  end  of  righteous- 
ness in  the  individual, — how  the  whole  makes  perfect 
the  individuals  which  constitute  the  whole. 

The  whole  social  machinery  is  but  a  complex  school 
system,  to  bring  man  out  of  his  present  real  world  into 
the  world  of  higher  truth  and  reality.     In  fact,  we  should 

*  See  rhilosopliy  of  Teaching,  pages  270-275. 
8 


34  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

• 

scarcely  pass  the  limit  of  literal  language  if  we  should 
say  that  the  universe  itself  is  such  a  system;  for  what 
do  we  know  of  the  universe  but  a  nature,  an  energy, 
striving  through,  and  by  means  of,  outer  forms  to  a  more 
perfect  manifestation  of  itself?  And  this  energy,  so  far 
as  man  presumes  to  officiate,  or  even  to  comprehend,  is 
what  has  been  stated  as  the  law  of  the  school,  and  which 
appears  authoritative  in  having  universal  validity  for  all 
organizations.  Even  the  universe  is  but  a  striving  after 
the  unity  of  the  real  and  the  potential,  of  appearance 
and  ultimate  reality. 


THE   LAW   EVOLVING   THE   ORGANISM. 


Having  moved  inward  through  the  organism  to  find  the 
law,  the  way  is  prepared  to  move  outward,  and  study  the 
organism  in  light  of  its  genesis  under  the  law.  Thus  the 
parts  and  their  functions  can  best  be  made  to  appear  in 
their  true  relations,  and  the  conditions  prepared  for  the 
active  process  to  be  described  in  the  next  chapter,  — ''  The 
Organism  in  Executing  tlie  Law." 

The  law  of  unity  between  the  individual's  real  and 
ideal  self  lies  back  of  tlie  formal  school  organization; 
and,  as  before  stated,  is  common  to  all  organizations. 
It  shapes  the  school  as  the  vital  iiriiicij)le  shaj^es  the 
])hysical  organism.  Tlie  scliool  is  the  imincdiatt'  <ilV- 
s])ring  of  the  rational  nature  of  the  individual ;  it  is  that 
nature  externalized.  Man,  having  the  power  to  dis- 
tinguish between  his  present  attainment  and  his  potential 
good,  takes  an  active  part  in  his  own  development.  ^lan 
is  held  responsible  for  sliaping  his  own  life.  In  this  dual 
relation  of  the  individual  to  himself  we  have  both  the 
teacher  and  the  taught,  and  therefore  the  school;  for 
the  school  is  the  organic  unity  between  the  teaclier  and 


36  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

the  pupil.  Teacher  and  pupil  are  correlative,  twin-born; 
yea,  triple-born,  for  the  school  is  born  with  them,  being 
the  correlation  of  the  other  two.  If  the  school  did  not 
thus  exist  organized  in  subjective  consciousness,  it  could 
not  exist  in  objective  reality.  This  fact  of  self-conscious- 
ness, which  is  the  origin  and  law  of  the  school,  is  tlie 
point  of  departure  in  "The  Philosopliy  of  Teaching."  All 
managing  resolves  itself  into  teacliing,  and  all  teaching 
takes  form  in  managing.  The  two  are  the  outside  and 
the  inside  of  the  same  process. 

The  formal  school  arises  when  the  function  of  self- 
instruction  is  delegated  to  another.  This  other,  being 
farther  removed  from  the  pupil's  real  self,  secures  a 
higher  tension  with  that  real  self.  Thus  the  school, 
implicit  in  the  nature  of  the  individual,  arises  in  the  act 
of  consciousness  which  differentiates  into  teacher  and 
taught;  and  is  formally  organized  when  the  pupil,  or  his 
agents,  authorizes  another  to  stand  for  his  ideal.  This 
illustrates  again  the  fact  that  the  school  is  a  projection 
out  of  the  nature  of  the  individual  himself.  By  his  own 
nature  he  is  pupil  to  himself  as  teacher.  If  this  were 
not  true,  he  could  have  no  other  teacher.  The  school 
is  verily  himself;  and,  as  before  shown,  in  rendering 
obedience  to  it,  he  but  obeys  his  own  nature. 

Again,  the  school  appears  to  have  a  like  nature  with 
all  other  institutions,  for  all  are  but  specializations  and 
externalizations  of  the  life  of  the  individual.  For 
instance,  the  individual  has  in  himself  the  disposition, 
and  to  a  certain  extent  the  physical  ability,  to  protect 


TllK   LAW   EVOLVING   THE   ORGANLSM.  37 

himself  in  the  rush  and  violence  of  city  life.  He  might, 
by  training  in  courage  and  pugilistic  qualities,  and  with 
the  proper  weapons  of  self-defence,  i)rotect  himself;  but 
instead  of  developing  this  aspect  of  his  life,  he  delegates 
the  function  of  self-defence  to  a  police  force,  transform- 
ing his  labor,  performed  more  efficiently  in  another  direc- 
tion because  withdrawing  himself  from  police  duty,  into 
the  police  service  of  another,  througli  the  medium  of 
exchange  in  the  form  of  city  tax.  So  with  the  hrc 
department,  the  board  of  health,  the  postal  service,  the 
court  of  justice,  the  manufactory,  the  surgical  institute, 
the  state,  and  every  possible  form  of  institutional  life,  — 
all  are  but  specialized  and  externalized  functions  of  the 
individual  to  the  end  of  more  efficient  service,  secured 
through  some  medium  of  exchange  for  service  of  the 
individual  performed  in  ths  special  direction  of  his  own 
fitness.  By  tlie  miracle  of  institutional  and  social  life 
the  individual  transforms  himself  into  the  most  skilful 
physician,  lawyer,  architect,  engineer,  pilot,  minister,  or 
teacher,  as  he  may  need;  each  of  these  is  but  the  projec- 
tion of  some  specialized  desire  and  faculty,  to  the  end  of 
his  own  more  diverse  and  complete  living. 

And  so  the  faculty  by  which  the  individual  instructs 
himself  is  made  more  efficient  by  giving  it  specialized 
objective  form  in  another.  Tims  the  school,  and  all  otlier 
institutions,  has  a  subjective  origin  in  the  nature,  needs, 
and  impulses  of  the  individual.  The  most  immediate  and 
fundamental  part  of  the  external  school  organism,  because 
serving  as  direct  means  to  the  unity  of  tlie  pupil  witli  his 

SIATE  NORMAL  SaiUU. 


88  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

higher  self,  is  the  teacher;  and  the  problem  of  all  prob- 
lems in  school  management  is  that  of  securing  those 
qualities  in  the  teacher  which  are  in  unity  with  the 
best  interests  and  highest  aims  of  the  pupil's  life. 


Unifying  Qualities  in  the  Teacher. 

The  first  step  in  the  evolution  of  the  outer  organism 
is  to  make  an  objective  differentiation  corresponding  to 
the  subjective  one, — the  teacher  differentiated  from  the 
other  members  of  society  who  are  to  be  taught.  We  must 
not  forget  that  education  is  carried  on  by  other  agencies 
than  those  formally  set  apart  for  that  purpose.  The 
child's  touch  with  his  environment  —  with  nature  and 
with  social  and  industrial  life  —  has,  perhaps,  more  influ- 
ence over  him  than  the  set  lessons  of  the  teacher.  This 
fact  saves  him  from  the  bungling  work  of  the  school- 
master. The  teacher  may  work  by  forced  and  stupefying 
processes;  but  nature  and  life,  by  more  intimate  sympathy 
and  wiser  council,  and  by  a  constant  and  all-sided  influ- 
ence, counteract  conventional  methods. 

One  is  often  surprised  in  noting  how  small  the  differ- 
ence between  those  who  have  enjoyed  the  best  school 
training  and  those  who  have  only  intimate  experience 
with  the  world  about  them.  This  surprise  comes  from 
not  taking  into  account  the  numerous  educative  forces 
incident  to  the  activities  of  life.  Said  Rev.  Mclntyre, 
"I  remember  the  sneer  of  the  first  campaign,  that  Lincoln 


THE   LAW   EVOLVING   THE   ORGANISM.  39 

had  only  got  six  months'  education.  It  was  wrong:  it 
should  have  been  six  montlis'  scliuoling;  he  had  only 
that,  but  he  was  tlie  best  educated  man  of  liis  time." 
Shakespeare  has  likewise  been  reproached  with  lack  of 
education;  and  tliis  because  he  "knew  little  Latin  and 
less  Greek."  But  some  one  appropriately  retorts  tliat, 
what  was  of  greater  moment,  the  Latin  and  Greek  writers 
did  not  know  Shakespeare.  It  is  a  current  remark  about 
people  who  stand  out  from  among  their  fellows  because 
of  greater  power  of  thouglit,  skill  in  using  faculties,  and 
depth  of  experience,  but  who  have  had  but  little  schooling, 
that  they  lack  education.  Education  does  not  consist  in 
knowing  certain  definite  things,  as  Greek,  Latin,  or 
mathematics,  but  in  that  power  and  versatilit}^  of  thouglit 
and  emotion  which  elevate  life  into  truth  and  virtue, 
and  which  may  come  from  any  form  of  tiue  and  deep 
experience  which  tlie  individual  has  with  tlie  world 
about  hiin.  Contact  with  the  world,  as  well  as  the 
tuition  of  the  school,  produces  wealth  of  experience 
and  ripe  wisdom.  The  individual's  whole  environment 
educates  him  ;  and  the  teacher,  being  but  a  small  ]i;irt 
of  this,  nnist  not  be  accredited  nor  charged  witli  tlie 
whole  result. 

But  tlie  point  touching  our  ])rf'sont  discussion  is  the 
distinction  between  tlie  teacher  and  th(^  other  educating 
agencies.  The  other  forces  work  incidentally,  while  the 
teacher  labors  directly  and  exclusively  to  the  end  of 
education.  Nature  teaches  the  child,  but  it  docs  not 
jdan  to  do  so.     Citizens  of  the  state  arc  taught    by  the 


40  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

state;  yet  teaching  is  not  the  state's  direct  business. 
The  family  and  tlic  church  work  more  nearly  by  the 
direct  process  of  instruction;  yet  their  functions  are  not 
exclusively  exercised  in  that  direction.  The  church 
touches  specifically  one  side  of  life,  and  this  by  intca- 
mittent  process  in  the  midst  of  the  daily  duties  of  those 
instructed.  In  the  school,  teacher  and  pupils  both  hold 
themselves  apart  to  the  one  duty  of  teaching  and  learning. 
Members  of  the  family  instruct  the  children;  but  this  is 
not  their  sole  function,  and  the  daily  pressure  of  life  is 
often  so  great  as  to  prevent  any  systematic  effort  in  that 
direction.  The  teacher  is  the  one  and  only  member  of 
society  whose  sole  business  it  is,  by  set  plan  and  purpose, 
to  develop  the  whole  life  of  another.  Of  course  he 
wisely  leaves  to  the  other  institutions  to  do  Avhat  they 
may  indirectly  do,  —  leaves  the  pupil  to  learn  what  the 
incidents  of  life  force  upon  him.  Why  should  the  teacher 
teach  the  conventional  ways  of  society,  such  as  table 
manners  and  social  etiquette,  when  the  situations  of  life 
will  more  efficiently  do  so?  Why  teach  a  child  that  snow 
is  white  and  cold,  if  he  always  sees  snow  in  winter?  or 
that  one  and  one  make  two?  —  thus  teaching  Avhat  every 
Dodd  Weaver  "knowed  always;  "  or  what  would  be  learned 
in  due  time  and  by  natural  process.  Why  teach  a  pupil 
to  vote,  while  the  whole  structure  of  society  is  such  as 
to  give  him  the  necessary  instruction  and  force  him  to 
learn?  Is  a  young  man  coming  to  voting  age  likely  to 
forget  the  dutj',  when  all  political  parties  have  an  eye  on 
him?  and  will  he  lack  for  instruction  when  so  man}-  well 


THE   LAW   EVOLVIXG   THE   ORGANISM.  41 

prepared  are  eager  to  give  it  without  charging  it  up  to 
the  school  fund?  What  the  pupil  must  learn  by  daily 
contact  with  things  should  be  left  to  the  agencies  of 
incidental  instruction.  Yet  the  teacher  must  take  into 
account  all  the  unconscious  processes  of  the  other  func- 
tions of  society,  and  make  them  a  part  of  his  conscious 
processes. 

In  the  preceding  discussion  the  school  was  shown  in 
its  deeper  connection  with  ;ill  other  institutions;  it  now 
appears  different  in  having  for  its  sole  and  direct  aim  the 
education  of  the  individual,  through  an  agent  exclusively 
set  apart  for  that  purpose.  It  is  obvious,  therefore, 
that  the  iirst  differentiating  quality  of  the  teacher  is 
that  of: — 

Freedom  in  the  "Vocation.  —  The  teacher  must  be  able  to 
say,  '"This  one  thing  I  do,  and  from  my  own  liighest 
personal  interest."  The  first  i)rineii)le  of  school  manage- 
ment, in  external  application,  requires  that  the  conditions 
be  made  such  that  one  can  well  afford,  from  the  stand- 
point of  self-interest,  to  devote  himself  to  teaching.  Of 
course  the  very  fact  that  one  in  so  doing  must  withdraw 
from  some  other  pursuit  requires  that  his  renuuicration 
be  equal  to  that  in  the  pursuit  from  which  he  witlidraws. 
This  at  once  necessitates  a  system  of  raising  school  funds. 
A  teaclier  cannot  be  a  teacher,  with  salary  insufficient  to 
supj)ort  liimsclf  without  turning  to  odd  jobs  to  meet  the 
necessities  of  private  and  i)rofessional  life.  This  is  not 
simply  a  question  of  competition  witli  otlier  professions, 
but  a  question  of  professional  life   or   death.      Just   in 


42  SCHOOL   MANAGP]MENT. 

proportion  as  a  teacher  has  to  plough  in  summer  in  order 
that  he  may  teach  in  winter,  he  is  a  farmer,  and  not  a 
teaclier.  The  salary  must  support  a  teacher  comfortably, 
and  enable  him  to  keep  abreast  with  his  profession.  This 
amount  the  ethics  of  the  situation  requires  of  every 
school  board,  whether  or  not  it  be  in  excess  of  that 
paid  in  other  professions.  Professional  freedom  must 
be  secured. 

Usually  increase  of  teachers'  salaries  is  urged  on  the 
ground  that  other  professions  pay  better.  Kow  a  teacher 
cannot  urge  such  an  argument,  for  fear  of  being  reminded 
that  this  is  a  free  country,  and  that  he  should  himself 
choose  one  of  the  lucrative  vocations,  or  quit  grumbling. 
Besides,  the  statement  that  other  professions  pay  better 
may  be  questioned.  While  the  poor  pay  of  the  teacher 
is  proverbial,  so  is  that  of  the  minister  and  the  lawyer. 
Think  of  the  donation  party  of  the  one,  and  of  the 
starving  period  of  the  other!  From  ten  to  twenty  thou- 
sand dollar  salaries  are  found  among  doctors,  ministers, 
and  lawyers;  but  they  are  also  found  among  teachers. 
Teachers'  salaries  are,  perhaps,  as  good  as  those  in  any 
other  profession.  But  this  proves  nothing  from  the  stand- 
point of  the  law  of  the  school,  which  requires  absolutely 
that  the  teacher  be  freed  from  the  necessity  of  engaging  in 
other  activities  while  striving  to  follow  his  own  vocation. 
He  must  be  enabled  to  differentiate  himself,  and  then  re- 
quired to  do  so. 

The  salary,  however,  is  not  the  only  personal  induce- 
ment to  engage   in   a  given  vocation.      The  question  is 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.       43 

more  properly  determined  by  tlie  opportunity  offered 
for  personal  culture.  One  should  choose  that  vocation 
which  requires  work  as  nearly  as  possible  in  the  line 
of  his  own  development.  The  greater  the  divergence 
between  tlie  line  of  one's  spiritual  growth  and  the  line 
of  activity  required  in  a  given  trade  or  profession,  the 
greater  must  be  the  salary  paid,  to  offset  the  loss  by 
giving  opportunity  to  make  life  whole  in  other  ways  than 
by  the  labor  in  which  one  is  engaged.  The  wood-sawyer 
needs  pay  enough  to  enable  him  to  seek  other  opportuni- 
ties of  growth  than  those  furnished  by  his  work;  but  the 
teacher's  activities  are  more  nearly  in  the  line  of  his  own 
development.  Whatever  be  the  occupation  or  profession, 
it  is  incidental  to  the  main  business  of  life,  —  that  of  self- 
realization.  A  teacher  may,  by  comparison,  rejoice  in  a 
less  salary  than  that  paid  to  a  policeman,  a  railroad 
conductor,  or  a  bank  cashier.  Who  would  resign  a  five- 
hundred-dollar  professorship  for  a  thousand-dollar  brakes- 
manship  on  a  freight  train?  No,  salary  is  but  one  of 
many  factors  securing  personal  freedom  in  the  vocation  of 
teaching.  The  law  of  school  management  requires  only 
that  the  collective  inducements  be  made  sufficient  to 
fully  differentiate  the  teacher  from  the  other  members  of 
society.  The  teacher,  while  aiding  tlie  pupil  to  realize 
his  purpose  in  life,  must  be  enabled  to  realize  his  own. 

But  the  management,  after  making  conditions  for  free, 
happy,  and  advantageous  service  for  those  qualified  to 
teach,  must  apply  the  law  anew  to  secure  other  unifying 
qualities  in  the  teacher.     "While  the  adoption  of  the  pro- 


44  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

fession  as  a  private  good  is  absolutely  essential,  and  the 
first  resting-point  in  tlie  evolution  of  the  organism,  a 
teacher  is  not  a  teacher  by  that  fact  alone.  To  decide  to 
teach  is  not  to  become  a  teacher.  The  teacher,  in  serving 
as  a  means  to  the  unity  of  the  imjjil  witli  his  ideal  self, 
can  do  so  only  through  being  in  unity  with  what  the  pupil 
is  to  become.  Hence  management  must  secure  in  the 
teacher : — 

The  Pupil's  Ideal.  —  The  unity  within  the  pupil  is 
secured  through  unity  with  the  teacher.  Unless  the 
teacher  is  the  better  self  of  the  pupil,  he  is  not  a  teacher. 
Teaching,  in  its  fundamental  aspect,  is  not  a  process  of 
going  through  the  thought  of  the  lesson  with  the  pupil, 
but  that  of  constant  readjustment  to  the  advancing  poten- 
tial self  of  the  pupil,  —  to  the  next  best  possible  thought, 
impulse,  and  resolution  of  his  growing  life.  In  the  very 
nature  of  the  teaching  process,  as  shown  on  page  4  of 
"The  Philosophy  of  Teaching"  and  page  17  of  the  present 
treatment,  there  must  be  identification  of  the  teacher's 
life  with  that  of  the  pupil.  In  this  process  the  teacher 
is  the  advancing  ideal  of  the  pupil,  and  by  the  tension  thus 
set  up  draws  the  pupil  unto  himself,  which  is  also  the 
pupil's  self. 

This  is  not  true  simply  in  a  general  and  abstract  way; 
for  in  every  detail  of  teaching  the  teacher  must,  in  the 
very  nature  of  the  process,  adjust  himself  —  his  thought, 
his  feeling,  his  life  —  to  what  the  pupil  ought  next  to 
become.  The  teacher  is  not  merely  the  remote  and  un- 
attainable ideal  of  tb.e  pupil,  but,  in  the  act  of  teaching, 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.  45 

becomes  the  very  near  and  present  help  to  the  next 
immediate  good.  The  remote  end  is  realized  by  a  con- 
stant descent  of  the  ideal  into  living  touch  with  the  real. 
Hence  the  teacher,  to  be  a  teacher,  must  be  the  advanced, 
realized  ideal  of  the  pupil.  It  is  not  sufficient  for  the 
teaclier  to  set  up  imaginary  ends  and  theories  for  realizing 
them  in  the  pupil;  he  himself  must  be  the  realized  end. 
It  is  scarcely  worth  while  for  a  teacher  to  set  up  as  an 
end  in  the  jDupil  the  formation  of  correct  habits  and  forms 
of  thought  without  having  realized  them  in  himself.  A 
teacher  wlio  is  not  able  to  think  with  scientific  patience 
and  precision,  cannot  train  to  such  patience  and  precision. 
The  unifying  grasp  of  thought  can  be  made  firm  only  by 
him  wlio  has  such  grasp.  Truth-loving  can  be  cultivated 
only  by  him  who  is  a  truth-lover.  Strength,  harmony, 
and  beauty  of  character  si)ring  only  from  the  touch  of 
him  whose  character  is  strong,  harmonious,  and  beautiful. 
The  teacher's  qualification  is  the  teacher  himself;  and  tliis 
must  be  taken  in  no  remote  way,  and  as  mere  example, 
but  in  the  sense  of  intimate  fusion  of  his  life-current  with 
that  of  the  pupil. 

This  introduces  a  distinction  wliich  further  emphasizes 
the  law  of  tlie  pupil's  ideal  in  tlie  teacher,  —  the  distinc- 
tion between  conscious  and  unconscious  tuition.  Tlie 
teacher,  by  conscious  plan  and  immediate  effort,  by 
definite  and  formal  instruction,  draws  the  pupil  iuto 
his  own  more  perfect  thought  and  life;  but  mui-h  of  the 
influence  exerted  by  the  teacher  is  unconscious  and  with- 
out forethought,  —  an  influence,   indeed,  which  plan  and 


46  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

purpose  would  certainly  defeat.  So  susceptible  are  we 
to  the  silent  intlueuce  of  others  that  we  are  supposed  to 
be  permaneutly  changed  in  passing  another  on  the  street. 
We  do  know,  both  by  experience  and  observation,  that  the 
mysterious  alchemy  of  influence  works  with  marvellous 
power  on  the  young  who  are  in  the  continual  presence 
of  those  whom  they  admire.  Pupils  instinctively  copy 
the  teacher,  even  to  the  fault  of  mannerisms  ;  from  which, 
and  all  other  defects  of  manner  and  life,  therefore,  the 
teacher  should  be  free.  But  the  pupil  assimilates,  as 
well,  the  beautiful  traits  and  the  wholesome  spirit,  which, 
like  a  fragrance,  fills  the  air  about  noble-minded  and 
warm-hearted  men  and  women.  Not  so  much  by  the 
fixed  and  hard  grooves  of  instruction  as  by  the  silent 
worship  of  the  heart  does  the  child  flower  into  beautiful 
life,  and  ripen  into  worthy  manhood  or  womanhood. 
Every  teacher  should  be  to  his  pupil  what  the  "Great 
Stone  Face,"  in  Hawthorne's  story  by  that  title,  was  to 
Ernest.  When  a  child  living  in  the  valley  among  the 
mountains,  Ernest's  heart  was  touched  by  the  beautiful 
and  benign  soul  expressed  in  the  "Great  Stone  Face." 
He  was  told  of  the  prophecy  of  the  coming  man  whom  the 
face  typified.  From  Ernest's  childhood  to  his  old  age, 
renowned  characters  came  to  the  valley,  heralded,  each  in 
succession,  as  the  man  of  prophecy;  but  in  each  case 
Ernest  shook  his  head  in  doubt  and  hung  it  in  sadness. 
"Will  he  never  come?"  asked  Ernest,  and  patiently 
waited  and  worshipped  in  silence.  Late  in  life  he 
thought  he  had  surely  found   the  man  in  the  poet  who 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.       47 

had  arrived,  and  whose  words  Ernest  had  pondered.  But 
not  so;  yet  the  poet  had  the  insight  to  discern  the  long- 
sought  man.  Ernest,  with  face  illumined  by  the  setting 
sun  and  the  radiance  of  eloquence,  as  he  addressed  his 
little  congregation  against  the  mountain-side,  stood  trans- 
figured by  the  life  he  had  so  long  idealized  in  the  "Great 
Stone  Face,"  The  man  of  proi)hecy  was  Ernest  himself; 
he  had  grown  to  be  what  he  had  worshipped  and  prayed 
for  in  another. 

A  reformed  convict,  some  twenty  years  after  his  release, 
thanked  the  good  priest  for  the  start  given  him  on  leaving 
prison.  The  priest  asked  what  he  had  said.  "Ah!  it 
was  not  what  you  said;  it  was  the  touch."  The  story  has  it 
that  an  eaglet  hatched  with  a  brood  of  goslings,  unconscious 
of  its  eagle  nature,  kept  to  earth  with  its  unnatural  mates, 
till  an  eagle,  hovering  over,  swooped  down  upon  it,  and 
touched  it  into  the  triumphant  life  of  the  free  upper  air. 

Tluis,  by  the  admiration  and  worship  of  a  superior  life, 
does  the  pupil  realize  the  worth  and  beauty  of  that  life. 
The  closest  and  most  precise  method  of  instruction  does 
not  measure  the  teacher's  responsibility.  After  all,  the 
]iu]iil  may  continue  to  walk  on  oartli  among  earthly 
things,  unless  quickened  by  a  touch  from  the  liovering 
spirit  in  the  higher  life. 

And  so  the  teacher,  who  enters  the  vocation  from  his 
own  interest,  is  permitted  to  do  so  on  the  condition  of 
being  the  ideal  life  of  the  pupil.  But  he  cannot  be 
merely  a  passive  ideal;  he  must  actually  lay  hold  upon 
the  pupil.     So  far  the  approach  has  been  made  from  the 


48  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

side  of  the  pupil:  first,  by  inducements  to  labor  for  him; 
and  second,  by  laying  hold  upon  the  teacher's  thought  and 
life  as  his  own  ideal.  Now  the  tension  works  from  the 
other  side  also.  Since  the  teacher  is  the  pupil's  other 
self,  he  should  strive  for  the  pupil  as  the  pupil  sliould 
strive  for  himself.  This  organic  unity  between  the 
teacher  and  the  pupil  is  the  standpoint  from  which  to 
answer  all  questions  of  management  arising  from  their 
mutual  relations.  In  fact,  this  is  the  standpoint  for  the 
solution  of  all  ethical  questions.  All  conduct  should  be 
regulated  by  regarding  "thy  neighbor  as  thyself."  The 
teacher's  ethics,  therefore,  falls  under  the  universal  law, 
and  requires  an  all-absorbing  enthusiasm  for  the  child,  as 
the  high-spirited  individual  has  for  his  own  ideal.  This  dis- 
interested devotion  to  the  good  of  the  pupil  is  known  as ; 

Professional  Spirit  —  1.  Professional  spirit,  in  general, 
is  the  feeling  of  urgency  produced  by  an  ideal,  in  order  that 
the  ideal  may  realize  itself.  It  is  the  craving  for  the  ideal 
to  such  an  extent  that  its  realization  is  both  the  motive  and 
the  reward  of  the  labor  required  to  realize  it,  Palissy,  in 
Longfellow's  "Keramos,"  is  caught  by  the  ideal  of  a  new 
enamel,  and  works  "with  such  good  cheer;"  yet  his 
"rustic  wares  scarce  find  him  bread  from  day  to  day." 

"  Who  is  this  in  the  suburbs  here  ? 

This  madman,  as  the  people  say, 
Who  breaks  his  tables  and  his  chairs 
To  feed  his  furnace  fires,  nor  cares 
Who  goes  unfed  if  they  are  fed, 
Nor  who.  may  live  if  they  are  dead  ?  - 


THE   LAW   EVOLVING   THE   ORGANISM.  49 

This  alchemist,  with  hollow  cheeks, 
And  suukeu,  searching  eyes,  who  seeks, 
By  mingled  earths  and  ores  combined 
With  potency  of  fire,  to  find 
Some  new  enamel,  hard  and  bright, 
His  dream,  his  passion,  his  delight  ? 

"  O  Palissy  !  within  thy  breast 
Burned  the  hot  fever  of  unrest ; 
Thine  was  the  prophet's  vision,  tiiine 
The  exultation,  the  divine 
Insanity  of  noble  minds. 
That  never  falters  nor  abates. 
But  labors  and  endures  and  waits, 
Till  all  that  it  foresees  it  finds, 
Or  what  it  cannot  find  creates." 

Yes,  professional  spirit,  in  its  poetic  form,  is  "the  hot 
fever  of  nnrest,"  "tlie  divine  insanity  of  noble  minds," 
laboring,  enduring,  and  waiting  to  find  or  create  what  is 
foreseen.  Labor  is  drudgery  or  joy,  depending  on  whether 
the  laborer  is  inspired  by  an  ideal.  Seeking  ideals  is  real 
and  true  living,  and  only  through  this  can  life  reach  its 
full  fruition.  Tlie  daily  routine  of  the  hardest  labor  is 
transformed  into  life  and  deliglit  when  some  ideal  in  tlie 
labor  takes  possession  of  the  heart.  When  the  master,  in 
Longfellow's  "Building  of  the  Ship,"  received  the  order, — 

"  Build  me  straight,  O  worthy  master, 
Stanch  and  strong,  a  goodly  vessel, 
That  shall  laugh  at  all  disaster. 
And  witli  wave  and  wiiirlwind  wrestle,"  — 

the  poet  says :  — 

"  The  merchant's  word 
Delighted  the  master  heard  ; 
For  liis  heart  was  in  his  work,  and  tlie  iieart 
Giveth  grace  unto  every  art." 


60  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

The  master  was  delighted  because  of  his  opportunity 
to  build  the  ideal  vessel, — "a  goodly  vessel,  that  shall 
laugh  at  all  disaster,  and  with  wave  and  whirlwind 
wrestle."  In  this  contract  there  was  no  delay,  nor 
parleying  and  competitive  bidding.  The  merchant  knew 
well  that  he  could  trust  the  man  whose  heart  was  in  his 
work,  for  his  heart  would  give  grace  unto  the  art;  and  the 
master  had  no  conditions  to  ask,  so  delighted  was  he  at 
the  opportunity  to  work  out  his  ideal  vessel.  And  the 
joy  of  labor  was  contagious;  and  in  the  long,  hot  days  of 
toil, — 

"  He  who  listened  heard  now  and  then 
The  song  of  the  master  and  his  men : 
'  Build  me  straight,  ()  worthy  master,'"  etc. 

A  skilful  shoemaker,  who  was  delighted  with  his  labor, 
and  who  was  always  talking  about  it,  when  asked  how  it 
was  possible  to  find  so  much  pleasure  in  the  monotonous 
exercise  of  driving  pegs,  replied  that  he  tried  each  time 
to  drive  the  peg  a  little  "slicker."  Each  time  he  set  up 
the  ideal  driving  of  a  peg,  and  drove  to  the  ideal.  The 
old  farmer  who,  in  spite  of  himself,  leaps  the  fence  and 
the  ditch  to  come  straight  to  the  tree  that  he  is  to  fell, 
cannot  understand  the  plodding  motion  of  the  hired  hand, 
as  he  takes  the  beaten  path  around  through  the  open  gate- 
way. But  both  move  along  the  line  of  least  resistance. 
The  conditions  are  not  such  that  the  hired  man  can  so 
easily  put  his  heart  into  his  work,  and  so  he  puts  his  time 
in  it.  How  much  it  would  aid  the  labor  problem  to  secure 
conditions  so  that  each  laborer  has  an  idea  of  his  own  to 


THE   LAW   EVOLVING  THE   ORGANISM.  51 

work  out;    so  that  it  become  not  a  question  of  enduring 
his  toil,  but  of  eager  opportunity. 

As  much  as  we  may  say  that  teachers  and  others  labor 
for  money,  yet  it  is  also  true  that  opportunity  to  realize 
a  cherished  idea  is  a  controlling  force  in  every  healthy- 
minded  person.  There  may  be  men  who  desire  to  be 
bishop,  to  be  called  bishop,  as  Ruskin  puts  it;  but  there 
are  men  who  desire  to  be  bishop  because  they  see  in  it 
opportunity  to  work  out  a  spiritual  good  in  the  church. 
There  may  be  men  who  desire  to  be  governor,  just  to  be 
called  governor,  and  for  whatever  adventitious  gain  in 
standing  and  notoriety  such  a  position  would  bring;  but 
there  are  men  who  desire  to  be  governor  to  bring  about  a 
firmer  administration  of  justice.  There  may  be  men  who 
seek  the  State  superintendency  because  of  the  distinction 
attending  such  a  noble  office;  but  there  are  men  who 
could  feel  no  such  elevation,  because  possessed  by  educa- 
tional doctrine  and  conviction,  which  sweep  away  petty 
and  ignoble  considerations.  There  may  be  teachers  whose 
motive  is  the  pay,  and  pride  of  position;  but  there  are 
teachers  who  seek  laljor  because  the}''  feel  that  they  can 
secure  an  educational  result  which  is  impersonal  and 
disinterested;  they  feel  a  potency  for  good  in  them,  ami 
crave  most  of  all  an  opportunity  to  realize  it.  It  is  use- 
less to  ask  wlictlicr  a  teacher  labor  for  salary;  it  is  only 
proper  to  ask  whether  he  labor  for  a  disinterested  good 
while  supported  l*y  his  salary.  An  increase  of  salary  does 
not  lessen  professional  interest,  but  rather  increases  it, 
by  freeing  the  tearhfr  from  the  anxiety  of  self-support. 


52  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

The  more  salary  the  teacher  gets,  the  less  does  he  need  to 
work  for  it;  the  less  his  professional  spirit  is  starved  by- 
foreign  considerations.  Yet  external  conditions  cannot 
quench  or  modify  much  the  genuine  professional  spirit. 
It  will  "burn  with  the  hot  fever  of  uni-est." 

The  true  professional  spirit  of  the  teacher  develops 
through  two  lower  phases.  In  the  lowest  phase  the 
teacher  has  the  heart  set  on  skilful  manipulation  of 
school  machinery,  —  the  perfect  way  of  moving  classes, 
calling  the  roll,  asking  questions,  manipulating  devices 
ornamenting  school-room,  — in  short,  the  perfect  military 
and  material  side  of  the  school.  This  is  a  worthy,  but 
not  the  highest,  phase  of  professional  spirit. 

The  next  phase  in  the  ascending  order  of  professional 
spirit  is  that  in  which  the  teacher's  interest  lies  in  the 
skilful  manipulation  of  mental  processes  in  the  art  of 
learning.  His  ideal  is  the  perfect  movement  of  the 
child's  mind  through  a  given  bit  of  subject-matter.  It 
does  not  include  the  sum  total  of  the  educative  processes, 
but  only  the  subject-matter  dealt  with  in  individual  recita- 
tions, or  in  given  portions  of  subject-matter,  —  as  the  multi- 
plication of  one  fraction  by  another,  the  raising  of  cotton, 
or  the  "Song  of  Hiawatha."  All  this  is  a  worthy  ideal, 
and  the  immediate  end  for  which  the  perfect  mechanics  of 
the  school  exist,  as  sought  by  the  ideal  of  the  preceding 
phase. 

The  highest  phase  of  professional  spirit  has  its  ideal 
in  the  development  of  the  child  as  an  entire  process.  All 
the  individual  lessons  are  held  in  the  unity  of  the  ideal 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISE       63 

unfolding  of  the  child's  life.  Each  lesson  is  now  seen, 
not  only  in  its  individual  nature,  but  in  its  tinal  issue. 
The  perfect  being  toward  which  the  child  moves  is  the 
conscious  principle,  guiding  the  concrete  work  of  lesson- 
hearing,  and  also  the  lower  phase  of  external  manipula- 
tion. An  individual  lesson  may  be  very  skilful  and 
beautiful,  when  considered  merely  in  itself,  but  found 
blundering  and  deformed  when  examined  in  light  of  the 
final  good.  The  passion  of  the  teacher  must  be  for  the 
ultimate  good  of  the  cliild,  and  not  the  immediate  seeming 
good.  The  feeling  which  arises  from  teaching  with  a 
consciousness  of  the  ultimate  good  is  the  highest  possible 
phase  of  professional  spirit.  It  is  much  more  difficult  to 
attain  to  than  either  of  the  preceding,  and  but  compara- 
tively few  reach  it,  —  perhaps  difficult  because  it  is  the 
highest  generalization  of  all  the  educative  forces.  Entliu- 
siasm  for  the  child,  and  not  for  machinery  and  pretty 
lesson  processes,  regulated  by  consciousness  of  the  rational 
process  of  educating  him,  is  truly  professional  spirit. 
This  is  the  point  at  whicli  the  teaclier  reaches  "the  divine 
insanity  of  noble  minds."  Palissy  attained  it  working  in 
clay.     Why  can't  we,  working  in  life? 

The  great  teachers  who  have  come  down  to  us  through 
history  are  so  because  of  their  devotion,  yea,  their  un- 
bounded enthusiasm,  for  the  pupil.  Can  we  doubt  it  after 
reading  the  life  of  Testalozzi,  Froebel,  Arnold,  Horace 
Mann,  iMark  Hopkins?  The  theorist  and  the  philosopher 
may  make  their  mark  as  such,  but  the  man  or  woman 
known,  esteemed,  honored,  and  loved  as  a  teacher,  must 


54  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

become  so  through  inteusc  sympathy  with  the  unfolding    / 
life  of  others,  — a  sympathy  which  gives  no  peace  except   ' 
in  the  self-forgetful  labor  of  nurturing  the  life  of  those 
struggling  for  better  things. 

The  requirement  of  professional  spirit,  by  which  the 
teacher  forgets  himself  in  the  pupil,  is  not  in  conflict  with 
the  requirement  of  freedom  in  the  profession,  by  which 
the  teacher  serves  from  personal  interest.  Eather  they 
are  in  perfect  harmony,  — in  fact,  organic  unity,  for  man 
cannot  find  his  life  except  by  losing  it.  His  subjective 
processes  of  growth  must  be  absorbed  in  some  objective 
product  felt  to  be  good  on  its  own  account.  Those  attain- ' 
ing  the  highest  excellence  are  not  self-seekers.  Man 
cannot  grow  in  charity  by  thinking  of  his  growth  in 
charity.  Patriotism  flourishes  best  in  him  who  is  too 
busy  in  his  country's  service  to  think  of  his  patriotism. 
When  Wilberforce  was  heroically  devoting  his  life  to 
freeing  the  slaves  in  the  West  Indies,  he  was  reminded  \ 
by  a  good  Christian  lady  that  he  was  neglecting  religion 
and  the  welfare  of  his  soul.  He  replied  that  he  was  too 
busy  to  know  that  he  had  a  soul.  Think  you  that  he  was 
not  saving  it?  There  is  no  way  to  attain  to  moral  sub- 
limity except  by  tension  with  a  universal,  objective  good, 
which  obliterates  self-consciousness  in  the  seeking.  The 
same  law  holds  whether  in  the  moral  or  intellectual  life; 
no  personal  heiglit  can  be  attained  by  thinking  on  the 
self  as  attaining  it.  Self-sacrifice  is  the  law  of  self- 
realization;  but  this  is  not  the  passive  yielding  up  of 
life,  rather  the  highest  form  of  self-assertion.     Hence  the 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANIS^L  55 

teacher,  from  the  highest  standpoint  of  self-interest,  must 
forget  himself  in  his  zeal  to  save  his  pupil. 

It  seems  much  easier  for  the  kindergarten  teacher  to 
obey  this  law  than  for  the  professor  in  the  university. 
The  latter  does  indeed  lose  himself,  but  too  often  in  his 
subject  instead  of  his  student.  The  modern  university, 
with  its  intense  spirit  of  research,  is  an  opportunity  for 
distinction  in  scholarship,  and  original  production  of 
learned  theses.  This  clearly  divides  the  faculty  into 
two  functions,  —  that  of  teacher  and  student;  but  tlie  law 
still  holds  that  a  teacher  is  a  teacher  only  in  devoting 
himself  to  the  student.  Of  course  the  professor  is  of 
more  value  to  the  student  in  being  a  living,  growing  man 
himself;  but  there  is  a  temptation,  too  strong  for  some  to 
bear,  of  leaving  the  student  out  of  the  account  altogether. 
The  absorption  in  his  line  of  investigation,  and  lack  of 
interest  in  the  personal  welfare  of  his  stiidents,  seems  to 
be  the  spirit  of  the  modern  university  professor.  The  stu- 
dent sometimes  puts  it  as  "lack  of  soul;"  but  this  feeling 
may  arise  from  an  unnatural  craving  for  attention  on  the 
part  of  tlie  student,  and  a  failure  to  make  allowance  for  the 
fact  that  the  requirements  of  the  subject  grow  more  rigid, 
and  those  of  the  student  for  direct  help  less  so,  on  reach- 
ing the  university  phase  of  school  work.  In  the  kinder- 
garten the  subject  taught  is  easily  managed,  so  far  as 
the  knowledge  required  is  concerned;  but  the  pupil  here 
must  have  immediate,  constant,  and  sympathetic  atten- 
tion. In  either  case  the  teacher  is  a  teacher,  and  a  great 
teacher,  just  in  proportion  as  lie,  b\'  generous  sympathy, 


56  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

compasses,  inspires,  and  guides  the  life  intrusted  to  liis 
care;  and  uo  more  than  the  kindergarten  teacher  can  the 
university  professor  escape  tlie  hiw.  Yet  we  read  in  the 
"Educational  Review"  for  January,  1895,  on  "Necessary 
Reforms  in  the  Colleges ,"  that :  — 

"In  the  zeal  for  special  research  which  .  .  .  has  become 
the  ideal  aim  of  much  college  instruction,  it  has  come 
about  that  only  the  most  brilliant  scholars  are  chosen  to 
be  instructors,  regardless  of  their  lack  of  more  strictly 
professional  prej)aration  and  experience.  .  .  .  '  These 
men,  generally  students  of  high  standing,  who,  after 
graduation,  have  seen  something  of  German  universities, 
cannot  conceive  their  function  as  did  the  worthy  teacher 
of  a  hundred  years  ago.  .  .  .  Some  teachers  of  the  old 
school  naturally  remain,  —  teachers  in  whom  the  moral 
and  personal  relation  to  their  pupils  is  still  predominant; 
but  the  main  concern  of  our  typical  young  professor  is 
not  his  pupils  at  all.  It  is  his  science.  .  .  .  But, 
generally  speaking,  he  wishes  to  be  a  scholar,  and  is  a 
teacher  only  by  accident,  —  only  because  scholars  are  as 
yet  supported  by  institutions  whose  primary  object  is  the 
education  of  youth.  .  .  .'^ 

"The  attitude  of  professors  of  the  type  Dr.  Santayana 
has  described,  toward  associates  of  what  I  deem  a  better 
type,  is  very  clearly  disclosed  by  such  remarks  as  the 
following.  A  prominent  professor  in  one  of  the  foremost 
American  colleges,  speaking  of  a  distinguished  colleague 

1  Quoted  by  the  writer  from  Dr.  George  Santayana  on  the  spirit  and 
ideals  of  one  of  our  celebrated  American  Universities. 


THE   LAW    EVOLVING  THE   OKGANIS>L  57 

recently,  said  to  an  acquaintance,  *  Oh,  he  's  nothing  but 
a  teacher!'  Under  similar  circumstances,  a  professor  in 
another  well-known  college  was  overlieard  to  use  nearly 
the  same  language,  referring  to  a  colleague  wliose  name 
is  almost  a  household  word  among  teachers  and  scholars : 
*  He  's  a  mere  teacher.'  So  far  liad  tliese  eminent  gentle- 
men adopted  the  view  that  scholarship  and  enthusiasm 
for  research  are  tlie  supreme  essentials  to  success  and 
superiority  as  professors,  that  they  could  em[)l()y  the 
unwarranted  assumption  not  only  without  attempt  at 
proof,  but  in  terms  of  sincere  contempt  for  eminent  col- 
leagues. Could  the  speakers  know  the  frequent  com- 
parisons, highly  unfavorable  to  themselves,  made  by  some 
of  the  best  students  of  their  respective  colleges  between 
tliem  and  the  colleagues  they  tried  to  belittle,  they  might 
be  greatly  surprised  and  chagrined." 

2.  But  professional  spirit  is  much  more  tlian  a  suscepti- 
bility and  eagerness  to  respond  to  the  pupil's  need,  — 
more  than  blind  enthusiasms  for  what  the  pupil's  life 
holds  in  prophecy.  In  addition,  there  must  be  conscious- 
ness of  skill  in  aiding  the  pu[)il  to  realize  the  highest 
ideal  of  human  life.  The  teacher  must  feel  confident, 
througli  a  knowledge  of  the  nature  and  laws  of  spiritual 
growth,  of  safe  and  certain  guidance  to  the  end  s(mght. 
Professional  spiiit  is  thus  a  sense  of  the  power  to  accom- 
plish an  end  by  a  rational  process, — a  process  b}' Avhich 
every  step  in  detail  is  felt  in  relation  to  the  ultimate  end. 
The  teacher  must  rise  above  tlie  consciousness  of  the 
external  means,  and  of  the  mental  processes  involved  in 


58  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

teaching  a  particular  lesson,  to  the  consciousness  of  the 
universal  value  to  the  child  of  every  teaching  act.  A 
teacher  may  be  conscious  of  the  external  means  by  which 
to  teach  a  cube  to  a  child,  and  m-aj  have  analyzed  the 
process  by  which  he  forms  his  concept  cube;  but  unless  he 
can  state  and  feel  the  value  of  the  cube-experience  in 
terms  of  the  pupil's  unfolding  life,  lie  has  no  intelligent 
reason  for,  and  no  professional  spirit  in,  producing  the 
experience.  He  may  know  the  material  means  and  mental 
process  by  which  the  pupil  forms  his  picture  of  the  earth, 
but  he  can  have  no  reason  for  causing  its  formation,  and 
cannot  rationally  and  with  professional  spirit  do  so,  unless 
he  knows  how  such  a  process  and  product  is  to  aid  the 
pupil  in  the  solution  of  life's  problem. 

Every  lesson  the  teacher  hears  alters  in  some  way,  and 
permanently,  the  pupil's  whole  after  life.  A  pebble 
dropped  in  the  Atlantic  disturbs  all  its  waters,  the  waters 
of  the  Pacific,  the  solid  parts  of  the  earth,  the  air  above, 
and  through  these  the  cosmic  forces  of  the  universe. 
Every  lesson  re-shapes  the  pupil's  entire  life;  gives  it  new 
motion,  new  current,  new  tendencies,  and,  through  the 
wonderful  alchemy  of  influences,  it  modifies  the  spiritual 
forces  of  the  world.  Ordinarily,  the  teacher's  conscious- 
ness does  not  go  beyond  the  here  and  the  now  of  the 
lesson.  Yet  every  time  the  pupil's  life  is  touched,  the 
waves  circle  out  to  the  other  shore,  and  the  teacher  should 
keep  his  eye  on  the  other  shore.  The  teacher  must  never 
be  satisfied,  and  never  can  be  professional  in  the  highest 
sense,  until  he  becomes  conscious  of  the  ultimate  end  in 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.       59 

the  process  of  its  realization.  And  this  must  be  taken  in 
no  abstract  and  general  sense;  it  means  that  this  teacher, 
here  and  now,  in  this  particular  First  Reader  lesson,  is 
vividly  conscious  of  its  full  life-meaning  in  the  act  of  con- 
ducting the  lesson.  In  general  propositions  we  admit  all 
this;  but  what  needs  to  be  insisted  on  is  the  necessity  that 
the  teacher  in  his  daily,  concrete  teaching  experience,  be 
stimulated  and  guided  by  the  largest  meaning  which  the 
lesson  has  for  the  child.  All  tliis  is  but  an  aspect  of  the 
law  of  unity;  for  this  law  requires  the  teacher  to  keep 
liimself  in  unity  with  the  future  self  of  the  pupil,  in  order 
that  the  pupil  may  reach  that  self. 

Fusing  now  the  first  and  second  elements  of  professional 
spirit,  we  have  the  consciousness  of  realizing  ideals  by 
rational  procedure, — procedure  through  organized  steps 
to  a  clearly  defined  end. 

3.  If  we  draw  more  completely  under  tlie  law  of  unity, 
we  sliall  lind  professional  si)irit  to  be  a  still  fuller  exjipri- 
ence  tlum  yet  indicated.  The  self  which  the  pupil  is  to 
become,  and  with  which  the  teacher  must  be  identified, 
is  the  thought  and  spirit  of  the  world  objective  to  the 
pupil.  The  teacher  must  compass  in  his  own  life  the 
organic  unity  of  the  pupil  and  the  outer  world  ;  stated 
in  a  superficial  way  as  knowledge  of  the  pupil  and  of  the 
subject-matter.  But  this  must  be  a  knowledge  of  the  two 
as  one;  for  the  pu])il — this  solf  to  be  taught  —  includes 
science,  literature,  liistory,  etc.,  either  really  or  poten- 
tially. These  are  his  ]iresent,  and  are  to  be  his  future, 
experiences,  connected  by  one  whole  of  life  activity.     The 


60  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

teacher  is  the  connecting  instrument  between  the  ohl 
experience  and  the  new,  having  brought  both  into  terms 
of  his  own  life. 

The  branches  to  be  taught  are  only  processes  of  thought 
or  forms  of  experience  by  which  the  pupil  iinds  his  life 
in  the  infinite  life  about  him.  Therefore,  when  it  is  said 
that  the  teacher  must  be  the  other  self  to  the  pupil,  it  is 
implied  that  this  objective  world  to  the  pupil  is  already 
made  the  teacher's  own.  He  must  know  from  experience 
the  relation  of  the  thought  and  spirit  of  the  world  to  the 
growing  life  of  his  pupil.  The  little  flower  has  whispered 
to  him  of  the  inflnite,  and  he  must  know  what  message 
it  has  to  his  blindly  craving  pupil.  The  lily  has  spoken 
to  him  its  thought,  plan,  and  purpose;  its  innocence, 
purity,  and  beauty;  and  he  feels  by  sympathy  how  much 
the  more  limited  life  of  his  pupil  needs  such  experiences. 
He  has  felt  the  strength,  self-sacrifice,  and  heroism  of 
Socrates,  and  knowing  that  his  pupil  must  grow  in  firm- 
ness of  virtue,  brings  Socrates'  life  into  the  pupil's 
experience.  The  teacher  must  see  to  it  that  the  heavens 
declare  the  glory  of  God  to  the  pupil,  but  they  must  first 
have  declared  it  to  the  teacher.  Thus  the  soul  of  the 
objective  world  is  transformed  into  the  life  of  the  pujiil 
through  the  experience  of  the  teacher. 

Professional  spirit  thus  involves  a  consciousness  of 
subject-matter  as  connected  experience  in  the  process  of 
spiritual  growth.  It  cannot  be  urged  too  often  that  a 
teacher  must  know  his  subject  in  and  of  itself;  that  he 
cannot  teach  what  he  does  not  know ;  and  that  he  cannot 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.  \   61 

teach  evea  what  he  does  teach  without  knowing  vastly 
more  than  the  pupil  is  expected  to  learn.  The  wealth  of 
experience  one  has  had  in  a  suhject  is  the  largest  deter- 
mining factor  in  his  professional  preparation,  for  this 
experience  is  the  spiritual  medium  by  whieli  the  pupil 
comes  into  unity  with  the  life  of  the  objective  world, 
which  is  his  larger  self.  But  we  often  hear  that  knowl- 
edge of  subject-matter  alone  is  not  sufficient;  that  there 
must  be  knowledge  of  methods  of  instruction.  The  sharp 
opposition  i;sually  drawn  between  these  two  seems  to  be 
unfortunate;  yet  it  will  serve  to  enforce  the  truth.  In  a 
convention  of  teachers,  some  of  whom  are  trained  in  the 
normal  school  and  some  in  the  college,  we  expect  to  hear 
from  one  side  the  imputation  of  a  laek  of  professional 
training,  and  from  the  other  the  sneer  at  method  in  an 
empty  head;  because,  perhaps,  both  are  somewhat  empty, 
—  one  in  not  seeing  that  the  subject  has  the  method 
within  itself,  and  the  other  in  failing  to  note  that  method 
must  find  itself  in  the  subject;  it  cannot  dangle  in  the  air. 
Whatever  it  may  be  called,  the  teacher  must  see  his  subject 
as  an  unfolding  experience  in  the  life  of  the  pupil,  and 
not  simply  as  a  system  of  thought  having  its  own  logical 
coherence.  Knowledge  of  subject-matter  is  a  system  of 
thought,  organized  about  some  central  principle  announced 
l>y  the  subject-matter  itself;  but  the  teacher  must  organize 
the  subject-matter  about  the  life  of  the  pu[)il ;  it  is  moans 
now  to  tlio  child  as  end.  It  is  not  a  question  of  logical 
coherence  wholly,  but  also  of  chronological  experience 
in    the    learner.     At   any   rate,   the    subject,    in    the    most 


62  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

fundamental  view,  is  a  mental  process,  rather  than  a 
product;  and  a  process  has  method.  A  consciousness  of 
the  process  of  a  subject  in  becoming  the  realized  self  of 
tlie  learner  is^  by  the  law  of  unity,  an  essential  element 
in  professional  spirit. 

This  last  requirement,  more  than  any  other,  puts  the 
greatest  strain  upon  the  teacher;  and  is  therefore  the 
liighest  test  of  professional  preparation.  It  not  only 
requires  a  knowledge  of  the  psychology  of  the  learner, 
and  of  the  logic  of  tlie  subjects  by  which  he  is  taught,  but 
of  the  unity  of  the  two  in  an  educative  process.  This 
process  is  bewilderingly  complex,  because  of  the  many- 
sidedness  of  the  learner's  life,  and  of  the  world  which 
administers  to  the  interests  of  that  life;  and  this  if  life 
is  considered  only  by  cross  section,  but  much  more  when 
viewed  in  its  on-going,  with  new  needs,  interests,  and 
aspirations  at  every  turn.  This  introduces  the  most  com- 
plex and  baffling  conception  with  which  the  teacher  has 
to  deal,  — the  Course  of  Study.  This  is  made  up  of 
co-existent  (practically)  and  successive  experiences  with 
the  objective  world  of  thought  as  formulated  in  the 
branches  of  the  school  course.  The  needs  of  child  life 
at  any  one  period  can  be  satisfied  only  by  touching  the 
most  diverse  lines  and  phases  of  subject-matter;  and  with 
every  stage  of  progress  these  assume  new  divisions  and 
varied  aspects.  What  lines  of  work  fuse  most  naturally 
and  helpfully  into  a  present  life  experience,  and  what 
phases  of  each  follow  in  a  natural  order  of  growth,  is  the 
greatest  of  all  problems  for  the  teacher.     The  emphasis 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.      63 

given  to  this  problem  at  present  is  a  hopeful  sign.  "  Cor- 
relation "  and  "  sequence  of  studies  "  are  capital  words  in 
the  teacher's  vocabulary ;  especially  so  if  not  taken  to 
mean  the  stiff  and  formal  program  of  parallel  columns, 
with  yearly  cross  sections  for  mere  convenience  of  school 
machinery;  but  in  the  true  and  inward  sense  of  variet}', 
unity,  and  volume  of  experience,  moving  by  steady  progress 
to  full -orbed  manhood  and  womanhood.  A  course  of  study 
is  a  statement  of  the  process  of  self-realization  in  terms  of 
subject-matter;  it  is  growing  subjective  experience  put  in 
objective  form,  determined  not  by  logic  but  by  the  interests 
and  necessities  of  life. 

For  practical  purposes  the  whole  course  of  study  must 
be  worked  out  in  quite  minute  details.  No  matter  if  a 
teacher  teach  but  a  single  grade,  that  work  cannot  be 
done  intelligently  without  a  sense  of  its  organic  relation 
to  the  wliole.  Nothing  is  more  fatal  to  professional  spirit 
than  for  a  teacher  in  a  graded  school  to  passively  accept  a 
course  planned  by  the  superintendent.  The  teacher  must 
feel  himself  to  be  in  harmony  with  the  whole  course,  which 
requires  a  sense  of  the  whole;  besides,  the  harmony  and 
rhythm  of  the  whole  course  requires  intelligent  adjust- 
ment to  the  whole  by  each  who  conducts  a  part.  Such 
a  detailed  statement  as  required  cannot  here  be  even 
sketched,  for  this  would  require  a  special  treatise  on  a 
course  of  study.  Nothing  further  can  here  be  done  than 
to  emphasize  the  necessity  of  a  clear  conception  of  such 
a  course  on  the  part  of  every  teacher.  The  underlying 
principles  T  have  tried  to  present  on  pages  246-260  in 
"The  Philosophy  of  Teaching." 


64  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

And  thus  professional  spirit  has  grown  to  be  eonscious- 
ness  of  the  unfolding  life  of  the  learner  in  forms  and 
processes  of  subject-matter. 

4.  Having  brought  the  teacher  into  this  elevation  of 
professional  life,  it  seems  at  first  that  nothing  more  coiild 
be  desired.  But  it  will  be  remembered  from  the  first 
chapter  that  the  teacher  comes  into  unity  with  the  pupil 
through  the  elaborate  machinery  of  the  school  organiza- 
tion. Much  of  this  at  best  he  has  to  wield  as  a  means  to 
the  teaching  process.  If  his  care  be  limited  to  his  own 
school-room,  there  is  much  of  manipulation  indirectly 
related  to  the  teaching  act;  the  teacher  must  bi'ing  all 
the  conditions  and  forces  into  the  central  process  above 
described.  And  this  reijuires  that,  along  with  his  own 
sense  of  immediate  unity  with  the  life  of  the  pupil,  there 
be  sensitiveness  to  the  unity  of  the  whole  organism  which 
conditions  his  success  in  the  act  of  instruction. 

Lack  of  sensitiveness  to  the  unity  of  the  organism  is 
the  chief  source  of  failure  in  school  management.  The 
teacher  who  does  not  at  all  times  feel  that  the  school  is 
a  whole  with  focused  energy,  will  necessarily  permit  the 
dissolution  of  the  organism.  If,  for  instance,  the  sense 
of  unity  is  so  obtuse  as  not  to  be  disturbed  by  the  young 
lady  who  does  fancy  needlework  in  the  recitation,  or  as 
to  permit  the  teacher  to  pass  to  the  back  of  the  room  to 
engage  in  a  private  conversation  with  a  pupil,  nothing  i^ 
to  be  expected  but  disorder  and  confusion  throughout. 

This  sensitiveness  to  unity  arises  from  the  form  and 
habit  of  organic  thought,  —  of  grasping  diversity  into  unity. 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.  Go 

It  requires  a  great  stress  of  conception  to  hold  into  unity 
such  a  complex  object  and  process  as  the  school.  ^Vll;lt 
the  teacher  needs  is  a  severe  course  of  mental  training 
to  grasp  complex  functions  into  a  single  process.  This 
training  is  not  peculiar  to  school  management,  but  is 
secured  by  the  })roper  form  of  thinking  any  subject.  To 
think  rigidly  the  human  body  as  an  organism  secures 
the  proper  habit  and  form  of  thought  for  grasping  the 
school  as  an  organism.  To  see  all  the  parts  in  the  great 
panorama  of  history  as  co-operating  to  tlie  single  issue  of 
a  great  principle  is  to  prepare  the  mind  for  the  complex 
conception  which  is  the  basis  of  practical  school  manage- 
ment. Any  discussion  of  scliool  management  which  yields 
only  a  loose  aggregate  of  topics  and  rules  counteracts  in 
habit  of  thought  more  than  it  contributes  by  its  generous 
supply  of  precepts.  All  this  suggests  the  important 
principle  that  a  teacher  must  not  liave  too  much  faitli  in 
immediate,  short,  and  direct  jn-ocesses  of  preparation  ;  but 
must  know  that  whatever  trains  the  mind  to  its  perfect 
work  gives  the  needed  special  preparation  for  any  situa- 
tion and  duty  of  school  life;  that  tliere  is  no  way  to 
prepare  himself,  or  his  pupils  either,  for  practical  duties, 
but  to  train  himself  to  fundamental  forms  and  habits  of 
thouglit  and  life.  Hence  the  teacher  who  would  bring 
his  school  into  unity  and  harmony  of  process  must  come 
to  the  work  with  a  keen  sense  of  unity  and  harmony, 
grounded  in  thorough  training  in  organic  forms  and  habits 
of  thought.  To  make  the  school  in  form  of  unity,  the 
teacher  must  first  have  lijduced  himself  to  that  form,— 


66  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

into  an  abiding  consciousness  of  unity  in  presence  of  the 
school  organism.  This  is  the  final  element  sought  in 
professional  spirit. 

Professional  consciousness  has  now  grown  to  be  quite 
complex  and  organic.  First,  there  appeared  the  self- 
forgetful  sympathy  and  enthusiasm  for  the  pupil  in  the 
general  interests  and  aspirations  of  his  life;  second,  the 
pupil's  ideal  was  clearly  grasped  in  the  process  of  its 
unfolding,  giving  rise  to  a  definite  sense  of  the  process  of 
self-realization;  third,  the  objective  world  appeared  in 
organic  relation  to  the  subjective  process,  giving  rise  to 
the  consciousness  of  organic  unity  between  the  subjective 
and  the  objective  self;  and  fourth,  there  arose  the  con- 
sciousness of  the  unity  of  the  external  organism  with  the 
process  of  unity  between  teacher  and  pupil.  These  are 
the  elements  of  professional  spirit  in  the  order  of  evolu- 
tion, under  the  force  of  the  law  of  unity  discovered  in 
the  first  chapter ;  and,  taken  altogether,  form  the  attribute 
in  the  individual  denoted  by  the  word  teacher.  These 
elements,  therefore,  in  their  organic  order,  suggest  a 
definite  scheme  for  the  examination  of  the  teacher.  It 
is  not  proper  here  to  make  out  in  detail  the  questions 
and  directions  for  such  a  test,  but  it  might  be  well  for 
the  reader  to  do  so;  and,  after  comparing  with  those 
currently  used,  imagine  the  result  in  substituting  the 
new  for  the  old.  We  hesitate  and  falter  before  such 
ideals ;  yet  the  only  manly  and  helpful  thing  to  do  is 
to  face  them  fairly  and  hopefully.  We  may  not  reach 
our  highest  ideals,  certainly  not  the  ideal  of  ideals,  which 


THE   LAW   EVOLVING   THE   ORGANISM.  67 

would  be  God  Himself;  but  there  is  no  high  and  worthy 
effort  except  in  faith  of  the  ultimate  reality  of  ideals. 
Falter  before  them  we  may,  but  we  cannot  escape  living 
ami  acting  under  them. 

Unifying  Conditions  of  Tkaciikh  and  Pupils. 

Let  it  be  constantly  held  that  the  primary  unity  sought 
is  that  between  the  pupil's  real  and  ideal  self;  that  every 
teaching  act  should  bring  the  pupil  into  unity  with  his 
next  best  self.  By  this  unity  as  a  standard,  the  qualities 
of  the  teacher  have  been  outlined  in  the  preceding  chapter. 
But  that  these  qualities  may  be  eifective,  the  teacher  must 
come  into  living  touch  with  the  pupil.  We  are  now  con- 
cerned, tlierefore,  with  the  conditions  of  unity  between 
teacher  and  pupils,  — a  secondary  unity  as  a  means  to  the 
primary. 

The  unifying  qualities  in  the  teacher  needed  develop- 
ment, but  the  unifying  qualities  in  the  pupil  must  be 
assumed  as  the  basis  of  the  whole  process.  The  school 
arises  out  of  the  impulse  of  the  student  to  unity  with  his 
higher  life,  and  hence  his  impulse  to  unity  with  Jiis 
teacher.  We  must  admit,  as  a  basis  of  the  school  pro- 
cess, the  fact  that  the  pupil  is  naturally  inclined  to  learn, 
and  to  join  with  one  who  will  t^niide  him.  This  is  the 
fundamental  premise  in  the  argument  that  a  school  is 
defective  Avhen  pu]iils  are  adverse  to  attendance.  If  the 
school-house  is  a  house  of  life,  and  learning  a  process  of 
living,  how  can  school  work  be  repulsive,  except  on  the 


68  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

assumption  that  it  is  antagonistic  to  the  interests  of  life. 
If  the  pupil  must  think  of  the  school  as  a  task  and 
imprisonment,  instead  of  joyous,  free  life,  something 
must  be  wrong  with  the  school  rather  than  with  the 
l)upil.  Barring  the  question  of  perverted  habits  and 
tastes,  the  teacher  can  have  no  liiglier  criterion  for  his 
work  than  the  joyous  and  eager  school-going  which  results 
from  his  instruction.  Since  the  school  arises  from  the 
student's  impulse  of  growth,  and  is  a  process  of  that 
growth,  his  own  consciousness  of  growtli,  witli  the  accom- 
panying satisfaction,  must  be  the  ultimate  standard  of 
testing  efficiency.  If  students  cease  to  elect  the  work  of 
a  professor,  this  evidence  ought  to  convince  the  president 
of  the  professor's  inefficiency ;  and  if  all  professors  were 
thus  abandoned,  it  would  be  attributed  to  worthlessness 
of  the  institution,  rather  than  stubborn  perversity  in  the 
students.  The  student's  desire  to  go  to  school,  when  the 
conditions  of  true  living  are  supplied,  is  the  ultimate  fact 
and  test  of  school  work.  A  compulsory  school  law  is 
compulsory  to  parents  rather  than  to  pupils;  it  is  to 
protect  the  pupil  against  the  invasion  of  his  rights  by 
parents  and  others.  This  law  is  an  enactment  by  the 
needs  of  the  pupil's  own  life,  and  sanctioned  by  his  more 
developed  reason  as  embodied  in  others;  it  is  nothing 
more  than  a  legalized  expression  of  the  student's  school- 
going  desire. 

In  the  case  of  the  teacher  it  is  found  necessary  to  offer 
inducements  to  enter  the  vocation;  but  the  Yery  nature 
of  the  pupil's  life  craves  being  taught;  so  much  so,  that 


THE   LAW   P:V0LVING  THE   ORGANISM.  69 

he  pays  for  tlie  opportunity  of  co-operating  with  the 
teacher  in  forming  the  school.  Hence  we  cannot  speak 
of  securing  qualites  of  unity  in  the  pupil,  as  was  neces- 
sary in  the  case  of  the  teacher,  but  only  of  the  pupil's 
conditions  of  unity.  The  jmpil  denuinds,  besides  certain 
qualities  in  the  teacher,  the  conditions  by  which  he  may 
enter  into  concrete  and  living  unity  with  the  teacher. 
Whatever  his  qualifications,  the  teacher  standing  apart  is 
of  no  service  to  the  pupil.  The  iu'st  and  most  general 
condition  is  that  which  secures:  — 

Personal  Contact.  —  Teaching  cannot  be  carried  on  in 
absence  of  the  pupil,  although  a  faint  attempt  is  some- 
times made  through  correspondence.  Since  the  pupil  is 
tO'  enjoy  the  general  elevating  influence  of  the  teacher, 
he  must  be  brought  within  the  atmosphere  of  the  teaclier. 
Personal  toucli  is  al)solutely  essential  to  tlie  influence  of 
the  life-giving  principle.  The  teacher,  as  the  unconscious 
ideal  of  the  pupil,  has  no  power  in  the  absence  of  the 
pupil;  the  radius  of  the  charmed  circle  is  measured  by 
the  distinct  intonations  of  the  voice,  the  sparkle  of  the 
eye,  and  the  beaming  of  the  soul  in  the  countenance. 

And  the  same  condition  is  no  less  rigidly  required  by 
direct  instruction.  Such,  when  possible  by  corres})ond- 
ence,  lacks  vivacity,  flexibility,  and  power.  Except  in 
the  living  presence  of  the  pupil,  the  teacher  cannot  adjust 
himself  to  the  varying  moods  and  unexpected  movements 
of  the  mind  in  the  process  of  learning.  Esitecially  exact- 
ing is  this  law  in  teaching  children.  On  account  of  the 
child's  inability  to  hold  a  continuous  line  of  thougiit,  the 


70  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

process  of  teaching  would  be  instantly  obstructed  by  its 
withdrawal  from  the  school-room.  The  longer  a  pupil 
can  hold  himself  to  a  proposed  line  of  investigation,  the 
more  may  he  free  himself  from  the  presence  of  the  teacher; 
and  complete  freedom  is  gained  on  condition  of  complete 
self-control.  This  law  is  clearly  marked  in  practice;  for 
while  the  primary  pupil  does  his  work  wholly  in  the 
presence  of  the  teacher,  the  university  student  works  most 
in  liis  absence,  hoping  soon  to  discharge  him  altogether. 
By  teaching,  tlien,  we  are  to  understand  the  immediate, 
direct,  face-to-face  stimulus  of  one  mind  on  another. 
The  fact  already  announced,  that  in  teaching  the  two 
minds  move  as  one,  requires  personal  contact. 

Hence  the  first  step  in  operating  the  external  machinery 
is  to  bring  pupils  and  teacher  together  at  a  given  time 
and  place.  The  law  of  obedience  to  the  requirement  of 
time  and  place  derives  its  authority  from  the  fact  that 
without  this  particular  form  of  obedience  the  co-opera- 
tion of  teacher  and  pupil  is  impossible.  The  law  against 
absence  and  tardiness  does  not  derive  its  validity  from  the 
school  board  or  the  legislature,  but  from  the  nature  of 
teaching.  Truancy  is  wrong  because  it  renders  impos- 
sible the  oneness  of  mind  between  teacher  and  puj)il 
necessary  to  instruction.  The  pupil  or  the  teacher  who 
is  wilfully  tardy  or  absent,  does  that  which,  if  done  by 
all  who  have  the  same  right,  would  completely  destroy  the 
school  organization,  because  it  blocks  the  machinery  at 
the  working-point.  And  the  same  right  is  extended  to  all 
by  the  law  breaker,  from  the  fact  that  he  assumes  such 


THE   LAW   EVOLVING  THE   ORGANLSM.  71 

privilege.  Thus  the  tax-payer  and  chikl  are  robbed  by  the 
mere  fact  of  absence  or  tardiness.  This  requirement  of 
time  and  place  is  sacred,  and  teacher  and  pupils  should 
feel  under  the  strictest  obligations  to  keep  it  inviolate. 
There  should  be  the  most  rigid  adherence  to  exact  time  in 
opening  and  closing  the  day  and  its  sessions.  The  ethical 
value  of  such  obedience  is  to  be  discussed  under  the  general 
heading  of  ethical  value  of  school  management.  I  speak 
here  only  of  such  obedience  in  relation  to  the  organic  unity 
of  teacher  and  pupil  in  the  act  of  instruction  ;  in  relation, 
therefore,  to  the  organic  unity  of  the  whole  system. 

This  law  of  personal  contact  determines  the  size  of  the 
class  or  school  to  be  put  in  charge  of  a  single  teacher. 
That  individual  needs  may  be  satisfied,  there  must  be 
opportunity  for  intimate  ])ersonal  acquaintance.  The 
more  helpless  the  student,  the  smaller  must  be  the  classes 
and  the  school;  although  in  practice  this  is  usually  re- 
versed, crowding  more  of  smaller  than  of  larger  pupils  in 
a  given  space.  So  much  depends  on  general  conditions, 
especially  in  the  training  and  power  of  the  student,  that 
no  definite  statement  can  be  made  as  to  the  proper 
number.  A  primary  teaclier  does  well  to  manage  a  class 
of  ten  or  a  school  of  twenty;  while  in  the  upper  grades 
management  ought  to  be  no  more  difficult,  so  far  as  the 
number  is  concerned,  with  classes  of  twenty  and  a  school 
of  forty.  AVhen  tlie  conditions  are  definitely  known,  the 
principle  which  requires  the  closest  personal  influence  and 
necessary  individual  assistance,  is  the  sufficient  guide  in 
practice. 


72  SCHOOL  MANAGEMRNT. 

This  law  of  personal  contact  in  teaching  requires  tlie 
school-room,  with  its  api)ointinents  as  a  mere  dwelling- 
place.  Thus  there  arises  out  of  the-  preceding  a  second 
external  condition  of  unity;  namely:  — 

The  School-room.  —  Considered  as  a  place  of  residence, 
the  school-room  must  be  made  a  positive  influence  in 
securing  unity  between  teacher  and  pupil.  It  must  be 
more  than  a  secure,  quiet,  and  comfortable  meeting-place 
for  teacher  and  pupil;  it  must  have  a  positively  elevating 
influence,  bringing  the  pupil,  by  its  active  toning  power, 
into  the  higher  life  and  mood  of  unity  with  the  teacher. 
The  pupil  comes  at  once  under  the  combined  influence  of 
the  presence  of  the  teacher  and  the  more  indefinable 
presence  of  the  school-room. 

The  school-room  must  be  homelike  and  cheerful, 
pleasing  and  attractive.  It  should  not  be  bare,  hard, 
and  repulsive,  but  filled  with  sunshine  and  delight, 
which  makes  it  more  attractive  and  cheering  than  the 
home  of  the  average  child.  This  does  not  require  up- 
holstered furniture  and  elaborate  decorations.  Clean 
walls,  with  here  and  there  a  well-chosen  picture,  which 
can  speak  to  the  mind  and  heart  of  the  child;  neat 
window-curtains;  a  few  flowers;  some  carjjeting,  —  the 
more  the  better;  and  whatever  little  matters  good  taste 
would  suggest.  The  tone  of  the  school-room,  aside  from 
inducing  the  mood  of  mind  favorable  to  unity  of  thought, 
is  one  of  the  powerful  unconscious  influences  shaping  the 
character  of  the  child,  and  should  receive  as  careful  atten- 
tion as   the  multiplication  table.     Court-houses  are  often 


THE   LAW   EVOLVING  THE   0I^GA^•1S^L  73 

quite  expensively  carpeted,  to  be  bespattered  by  coarse 
men  whose  formative  period  is  passed;  while  school- 
houses  have  bare  walls,  floors,  and  platforms,  to  be  occu- 
pied the  whole  day  by  pure,  susceptible  childhood.  A 
more  refining  power  in  the  school-room,  and  the  court- 
room becomes  the  less  useful.  The  court-house  is  not 
overdone;  the  scliool-house  is  under  done.  The  teacher 
must  not  wait  for  the  trustee  or  director  to  do  expensive 
things;  with  no  expense,  except  the  free  contribution  of 
pupils,  in  articles  and  in  labor,  the  school-room  can  be 
made  quite  cheery.     The  will  finds  the  way. 

The  general  relation  of  presence  of  teacher  and  pupil  in 
a  properly  toned  school-room  must  now  assume  definite :  — 

Communicable  Relation  of  Teacher  and  Pupils.  —  The 
immediate  condition  of  unity  is  that  which  makes  pos- 
sible the  exchange  of  thought  through  speech,  look,  and 
gesture.  Hence,  securing  communicable  relation,  to  the 
end  of  unity  in  the  act  of  instruction,  requires  more  tlian 
the  mere  presence  of  teacher  and  pupils  in  the  school-room 
at  a  given  time.  Teacher  and  pupils  must  be  brought  face 
to  face  as  in  tlie  act  of  communication.  This  requires 
pupils  to  be  seated  in  a  compact  form,  so  that  the  teacher 
can  seize  the  entire  group  in  one  view;  and  so  that  each 
pupil  in  the  group  is  in  easy  conversational  relation  with 
the  teacher.  The  seated  portion  of  tlie  room  should  not 
be  so  wide  from  right  to  left,  or  so  long  from  front  to 
back,  that  all  the  pupils  cannot  be  equally  distinctly 
addressed  by  eye  and  voice.  If  classes  are  to  be  heard  in 
their  seats,  say  in  tlie  left,  middle,  ur  right  uf  tlie  room. 


74  SCHOOL  .managem?:nt. 

the  Avidth  of  the  room  from  right  to  left  would  be  in- 
creased by  what  it  should  be  for  convenience  in  grasping 
the  school  as  a  whole.  In  such  a  case  there  should  be  a 
compromise  between  the  two  requirements.  If  the  school 
is  to  be  addressed  always  as  a  whole,  as  often  the  case  in 
a  high  school,  the  seated  portion  should  be  about  square; 
if  two  grades  are  to  be  in  the  room,  the  seated  i)ortion 
should  be  about  one  third  wider  from  right  to  left  than 
from  front  to  back.  The  avidience  room  of  a  modern 
church,  with  its  settees  circled  about  the  pnlpit  as  a 
centre,  and  elevated  in  the  rear,  is  a  recognition  of  the 
principle  here  to  be  enforced. 

It  is  not  well  to  have  the  body  of  the  school  separated 
by  stoves  or  wide  aisles;  the  external  form  of  unity 
should  be  maintained.  The  rows  of  desks  should  be 
placed  with  perfect  regularity,  and  the  whole  should  be 
made  to  look  well  as  a  body.  When  there  are  only  a  few 
pupils  for  the  number  of  desks,  these  pupils  should  not 
be  scattered  so  as  to  give  the  whole  a  ragged  appearance. 
Compactness  and  external  form  of  unity  furthers  the 
mental  unity  sought.  It  is  wise  foresight  to  visit  the 
school-room  before  opening  school,  and  make  sure  that 
the  seating  is  in  proper  form. 

This  law  of  seating  so  as  to  secure  easy  communicable 
relations,  requires  the  teacher  to  keep  himself  in  front  of 
the  pupils.  He  should  not,  for  instance,  go  to  the  back 
of  the  room  to  aid  a  pupil ;  he  should  be  where  he  can  see 
and  be  seen,  hear  and  be  heard.  Not  that  he  may  watch 
for  mischief,  but  that  he  be  always  in  convenient  position 


TUE   LAW   EVOLVING   THE   ORGANISM.  75 

for  communication,  —  that  he  may  constantly  grasp  the 
whole  in  unity,  and  avoid  the  school's  falling  to  pieces 
by  breaking  the  lines  of  unity  between  himself  and  each 
individi^al  pupil. 

Teacher  and  pupil  being  now  placed  in  definite  position 
of  unity  with  reference  to  each  other,  a  further  necessity 
arises,  which  must  be  met  by  adjustment  of  external  con- 
ditions. The  foregoing  conditions  confine  and  constrain 
both  teacher  and  pupils,  and  consume  energy  which  should 
be  expended  on  the  teaching  and  the  learning  act.  Thus 
arises  the  third  problem  touching  external  conditions, 
that  of :  — 

Economy  of  Energy  in  Teacher  and  Pupils.  —  Teacher 
and  pupils  have  but  a  given  amount  of  energy  for  the 
work  in  hand;  and  the  amount  wasted  because  of  unfavor- 
able conditions  incident  to  school-room  confinement  is  so 
much  subtracted  from  unity  in  the  teaching  process.  Tlie 
law  of  unity  requires  all  the  mental  energy  of  the  teacher 
and  the  pupil  expended  on  the  subject  under  considera- 
tion. Therefore,  the  conditions  must  be  such  as  not  to 
divert  a  portion  of  their  energy  to  something  aside  from 
the  line  of  discussion.  The  school-room  conditions  neces- 
sarily divert  some  energy  from  the  effort  for  which  the 
school-room  exists,  just  as  a  part  of  tlie  force  generated 
for  a  given  jnirpose  by  a  machine  is  destroyed  by  the 
machine  itself.  This  friction  must  be  reduced  to  the 
minimum ;  and  to  do  so  the  ways  in  which  energy  is 
wasted  must  be  ascertained.  Of  tliesc  there  can  be  but 
two:   (1)  uncomfortable   bodily  condition   may  divert   the 


76  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

attention  to  self;  or  (2)  attention  may  be  diverted  to  some 
other  object  aside  from  the  line  of  discussion. 

1.  The  physical  condition  of  teacher  and  pupil  must  be 
such  that  they  are  not  conscious  of  themselves;  or,  better, 
such  that  their  mental  energy  will  be  intensified  by 
physical  vigor.  The  conditions  cannot  supply  red  blood, 
or  prompt  the  rhythmical  pulse,  but  much  can  be  done  by 
way  of  conserving  energy  and  securing  comfort  to  the 
body  while  in  the  school-room.  And  for  liimself,  wliile 
out  of  school,  the  teacher  must  guard  his  physical  con- 
dition, and  keep  in  good  trim  for  the  school-room.  The 
law  of  the  school  forbids  late  hours  and  dissipation,  and 
enjoins  the  utmost  care  in  preserving  the  physical  and 
mental  vigor  for  the  strain  of  teaching  and  managing. 
While  in  the  school-room,  the  teacher  must  avoid  undue 
exertion,  —  must  sit  when  at  all  convenient,  and  avoid 
vexation  and  worry.  The  teacher  should  be  relieved  of 
the  unjust  burden  of  rejwrts  usually  imposed,  and  the 
work  of  teacher's  meetings  made  as  light  as  possible. 
The  exaction  of  boards  and  superintendents  in  reports 
from  teachers,  by  way  of  keeping  the  system  well  articu- 
lated, often  tends  strongly  toward  the  dissolution  of  the 
organism  altogether,  in  diverting  the  energy  of  the  teacher 
from  the  vital  point  of  the  organism. 

Under  the  first  point  of  economizing  energy,  the  follow- 
ing specific  conditions  must  be  secured :  — 

a.  Seats  should  be  so  comfortable  that  the  body  is  kept 
rested, — should  be  the  shape  of  the  body,  and  neither 
too  high  nor  too  low.     Much  is  properly  said  on  hygienic 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.  77 

grounds  against  the  high  desk  for  small  pupils;  but  I  wish 
here  to  emphasize  the  fact  that  such  is  also  detrimental 
to  the  act  of  instruction.  The  old  split  jmncheon  seat 
without  back  was  very  uncomfortable,  and  thus  very  nuich 
opposed  to  mental  unity  of  teaclier  and  pupil.  We  find 
here  also  the  grounds  for  intermissions  and  for  frequent 
physical  exercises.  The  pupil  must  be  kept  rested  and 
invigorated,  not  only  as  a  matter  of  preserving  health, 
but  of  securing  undivided  attention. 

b.  The  air  should  be  kept  at  the  proper  temperature. 
If  a  pupil  is  chilled,  liis  attention  is  directed  to  himself; 
and  in  a  room  of  forty  chilled  pupils  there  are  forty 
unities  instead  of  one.  It  would  be  difficult  to  over- 
estimate the  waste  from  inefficient  heating  apparatus. 
With  a  small  stove  in  one  corner  of  a  large  room  on  a 
cold  day,  unity  is  impossible,  and  the  day  wasted.  The 
air  must  be  kept  at  a  uniform  and  a  proper  temperature 
all  over  the  room,  or  the  efficiency  of  the  teaching  act  is 
impaired,  —  impaired  just  in  that  proportion  in  which  the 
attention  is  directed  to  the  self. 

c.  The  effect  of  bad  ventilation  on  tlie  mental  activity 
is  obvious.  Drowsiness  and  depression  weaken  and  divert 
mental  energy,  and  prevent  the  fullest  co-operation  of 
thought  in  the  line  of  discussion.  Hence  the  teaching  act, 
as  well  as  health,  requires  a  perfect  system  of  ventilation, 
and  the  care  of  tlie  teacher  as  to  the  constant  supply  of 
pure  air  in  the  school-room. 

d.  Since  the  process  of  unity  is  partly  carried  on 
through  reading  and  writing,   the  lighting  of  the   room 


78  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

must  be  such  that  no  eifort  is  required  tlirough  the  sense 
of  sight.  Just  in  proportion  as  seeing  becomes  difficult 
or  painful,  is  tlie  teaching  act  obstructed,  as  well  as  the 
eye  injured.  This  means  that  there  must  be  sufficient 
light,  and  from  tlie  proper  direction. 

Thus  all  these  points, — seating,  heating,  ventilating, 
and  lighting, — so  properly  urged  as  matters  of  health, 
are  the  conditions  to  receive  attention  in  securing  unity  in 
the  act  of  instruction;  for  bad  seating,  heating,  ventilat- 
ing, and  lighting  inuke  the  body  so  uncomfortable  that  the 
pupil  necessarily  thinks  of  himself  instead  of  the  subject 
being  treated.  These,  and  all  other  points  in  the  external 
conditions  which  divert  the  attention  from  the  topic  under 
consideration  to  the  self,  must  receive  careful  attention; 
and  this  not  only  in  a  negative  way,  for  these  conditions 
should  be  made  to  stimulate  the  energy  required  in  teach- 
ing and  learning.  To  remove  obstruction  is  not  sufficient; 
the  light,  and  the  air,  and  the  restful  position  must 
exhilarate  the  mind,  and  urge  the  unity  which  they  nega- 
tively condition. 

2.  If  the  attention  is  not  diverted  from  the  lesson  to 
the  self,  it  may  still  be  attracted  to  some  other  object 
aside  from  the  line  of  thought.  This  may  be  occasioned 
through  one  of  the  senses,  especially  through  touch,  sight, 
or  hearing;  or  by  some  preceding  train  of  the  thought  in 
which  the  mind  is  absorbed. 

a.  Because  objects  which  the  pupil  or  teacher  may 
touch  are  apt  to  attract  attention,  all  objects,  other  than 
those  required  in  the  immediate  work,  should  be  removed 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGAXLSM.       79 

from  the  desk.  Let  there  he  an  apple,  a  ball,  a  knife,  or 
a  pen  on  the  desk,  and  it  seems  almost  impossible  for  the 
pupil  to  refrain  from  handling  it;  and  thus  having  other 
thoughts  awakened  than  those  desired.  The  advantage 
of  single  over  double  desks  arises  at  this  point.  Every 
experienced  teacher  knows  how  much  less  is  the  strain  to 
keep  order  with  pupils  seated  single  than  when  seated 
double, — so  much  less  that  it  is  wise  economy  for  the 
trustee  to  buy  the  single  desk  at  a  nuich  greater  cosb. 

b.  Since  attention  is  apt  to  be  attracted  through  the 
eye,  all  unnecessary  movement  about  the  room  should  be 
avoided,  and  all  the  objects  in  the  room  be  orderly 
bestowed.  Pupils  passing  in  and  out  during  school 
sessions;  getting  drink;  coal  bucket  out  of  place;  one 
curtain  down  and  another  up,  etc.,  etc.,  — all  confuse  the 
attention  through  the  eye. 

c.  ]\[ost  effective  of  all  means  of  diverting  the  attention 
is  that  of  noise.  Silence  nuist  be  the  law  of  the  school- 
room. The  noise  of  whispering,  studj-ing,  fixing  fires, 
walking,  loud  talk  of  teacher,  etc.,  must  be  gotten  rid  of. 
It  is  quite  common  for  the  teacher  to  make  more  noise 
than  all  the  pupils  together.  A  teacher  should  spenk  in 
subdued  tones,  and  move  about  too  quietly  to  attract 
notice.  He  should  so  address  a  class  during  recitation 
that  the  pupils  studying  are  not  compelled  to  listen. 
Pencils  should  be  sharpened  at  recess;  and  slate  frames 
covered,  or  slates  abolished  for  note-books. 

I  know  it  has  been  often  Tirged  that  a  noisy  school-room 
ia  a  sign  of  energy  and   activity,  of  industry  and  hard 


80  SCIKJOL  MANAGEMENT. 

work;  that  the  working  beehive  miist  hum.  This  sounds 
very  well  till  we  reflect  that  it  is  physical  energy  and 
activity  that  makes  the  noise;  there  is  no  m(;ntal  analogy. 
Rather  it  is  the  reverse;  for  the  greater  the  mental 
activity  the  greater  the  silence.  The  boy  who  thinks  is 
not  necessarily  noisy,  but  necessarily  silent.  All  profes- 
sional students  seek  a  silent  retreat  as  the  best  condition 
for  mental  labor.  This  doctrine  of  a  noisy  school  arises 
from  two  classes  of  teachers,  —  those  who  cannot  secure 
silence,  and  seek  an  escape  through  the  theory ;  and  those 
who  champion  in  good  faith  the  plea  for  freedom  on  the 
part  of  the  pupil,  —  or,  as  it  seems  to  some,  a  plea  for 
license. 

d.  Little  can  be  said  to  free  the  mind  from  prepossess- 
ing moods  and  trains  of  thought.  The  opening  exercises 
have  a  value  at  this  point.  Pupils  gather  in  the  school- 
room in  the  morning,  bringing  with  them  their  diverse 
interests  and  thoughts  born  of  their  multifarious  duties, 
amusements,  and  associations.  The  opening  exercise 
draws  their  minds  to  a  centre;  the  music  brings  them 
into  a  common  mood;  and  the  Scripture  lesson  recalls 
them  from  their  ramblings,  and  tones  the  thought  for  the 
labor  of  the  day.  I  believe  that  opening  exercises  are 
justified  on  the  score  of  school  management,  as  well  as  on 
account  of  religious  culture. 

Having  now  brought  teacher  and  pupils  into  the  tonic 
atmosphere  of  the  school -room,  and  having  secured  defi- 
nite communicable  relations  in  face-to-face  position  ;  and 
further,  having  made  the  conditions  such  as  not  to  divert 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.  81 

energy  from  tlie  self  to  other  objects,  but  ratlier  such  as 
to  stimulate  energy  in  the  direction  desired,  teacher  and 
pupils  must  now  be  supplied  with:  — 

Instruments  of  School  Work.  —  At  first  the  school-house 
appears  as  a  convenient,  comfortable,  and  homelike  abode; 
and  second,  with  such  added  furniture  and  arrangement 
as  necessary  to  bring  teacher  and  pu})ils  into  definite  rela- 
tion for  the  interchange  of  thought.  Certain  ai)pliances 
must  yet  be  added  to  complete  the  outfit  of  every  well- 
furnished  school-house.  These  are  blackboards,  with 
accompanying  instruments;  maps,  charts,  and  devices  for 
illustrating  subjects;  laboratories,  library,  and  text-books. 

The  blackboard  is  the  constant  means  by  which  the 
teacher  and  pupils  exchange  thoughts  through  demonstra- 
tion, outline,  and  graphic  illustration.  Maps,  charts, 
and  illustrative  devices,  as  globes  and  mathematical 
forms,  are  the  more  perfect  and  fixed  forms  of  com- 
munication; while  the  work  on  the  blackboard,  though 
more  crude,  is  the  more  pliable  and  more  immediate  to 
the  teacher's  necessities. 

The  laboratory  differs  from  the  foregoing  in  not  being 
grajjliic  and  illustrative,  but  in  providing  for  the  manijiu- 
lation  of  the  actual  material  studied.  It  is  a  means  for 
multiplying  the  powers  of  observation  ;  both  by  way  of 
supplying  material  for  observation,  and  also  through 
instruments  which  multiply  the  jjowers  of  the  senses ; 
with  others  which  alter  the  conditions  of  the  object  to  be 
observed.  Laboratories  are  quite  a  conspicuous  part  of 
a  college   or  university  outfit;  but  high   schools  are  just 

6 


82  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

beginning  to  realize  their  value,  and  to  supply  themselves 
accordingly.  Their  indispensable  service  to  grammar  and 
primary  grades  is  yet  to  be  recognized.  The  teacher  in 
the  primary  school  who  values  truly  the  study  of  nature 
must  feel  hindered  in  a  school  without  some  chemical  and 
physical  appliances.  The  laboratory,  or  at  least  some 
means  of  experimental  study,  has  not  been  called  for 
more  earnestly  because  tlie  study  of  nature  so  far  has 
been  forced  in  the  back-ground  by  the  more  conventional 
studies.  When  observation  and  experimental  studies 
assume  their  proper  place  in  primary  and  elementary 
education,  then  the  laboratory  will  be  a  prominent  part 
of  the  common-school  outfit.  The  child's  education  begins 
in  the  great  laboratory  of  nature,  and  his  studies  should 
be  continued  unbroken,  but  in  a  more  rigid  and  systematic 
way.  He  must  be  trained  to  observe  more  accurately  and 
thoroughly,  and  by  the  use  of  instruments  to  persuade 
nature  to  reveal  the  mysteries  which  she  will  not  volun- 
tarily disclose. 

The  necessity  of  a  library  is  better  understood ;  but  iu 
this,  too,  we  find  the  same  decreasing  importance  attached 
in  descending  to  primary  instruction.  It  would  be  diffi- 
cult to  state  how  largely  a  university  in  these  days  con- 
sists in  a  library.  Class-room  work  is  reduced  to  a 
minimum,  students  spending  their  time  in  the  library 
investigating  subjects  under  the  direction  of  the  teacher. 
As  in  the  case  of  laboratories,  high  schools  are  beginning 
to  understand  the  value  and  use  of  libraries,  and  the 
library  is  gradually  taking  its  place  in  every  well-regu- 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.       83 

lated  high  school.  Wlien  teachers  in  tlie  lower  grades 
understand  the  science  and  the  art  of  teaching,  and  thus 
gain  freedom  from  the  conventional  school  drill  for 
definite,  ponderable  products  in  the  dogmatic  form  of 
text-books,  the  library  will  be  as  much  demanded  there 
as  in  the  university.  Of  course  the  organization  of  such 
a  library  and  the  use  of  the  books  will  be  different.  For 
instance,  multiple  copies  of  the  same  book  would  be 
needed,  so  that  the  teacher  could  use  it  with  the  class  as 
a  whole.  Instead  of  the  regulation  reader,  the  teacher 
who  did  not  work  by  the  page  would  be  truly  happy 
to  have  in  the  library  copies  enough  of  Hawthorne's 
"Tanglewood  Tales"  to  supply  liis  fourth  grade,  and  in 
a  few  weeks  be  able  to  substitute  Whittier's  Poems,  etc. 
The  child  in  the  |irimary  grade  has  the  right  to  a  supply 
of  the  best  juvenile  literature.  Are  not  nature,  history, 
and  mythological  stories  as  necessary  to  the  child's  culture 
as  science,  history,  and  philosophy  are  to  the  university 
student?  And  if  so,  is  it  not  the  business  of  the  school, 
as  much  in  one  case  as  in  tlie  other,  to  supply  the  neces- 
sary books?  Forces  are  already  moving  strongly  to  the 
fornuition  of  libraries  for  primary  and  gruiiiinar  grades. 
Never  before  was  there  so  much  stir  about  young  people's 
literature,  and  tlirough  agencies  at  work  many  common 
schools  now  have  a  nucleus  of  a  library.  When  the  convic- 
tion couK^s  tluit  a  library  is  an  essential  ])art  of  the  outfit 
of  every  school,  then  the  library  will  come  as  a  matter  of 
course,  as  does  the  school-liouse  and  blackboard.  And 
when  it  does  come,  it  will  do  more  than  all  other  agencies 


84  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

to   infuse  with   fuller   and   richer   life  the  hard  pedantic 
drill  of  the  school-master. 

With  all  that  has  been  said  against  text-books,  they  are 
still  essential  instruments  of  school  work.  The  library 
may  supplant  some,  and  render  others  less  necessary,  but 
its  main  effect  on  text-books  will  be  that  of  forcing  to 
their  intelligent  use.  We  cannot  refuse  all  things  which 
are  abused.  The  abuse  of  the  text  by  following  it  so 
slavishly  as  to  make  the  pupil  feel  that  the  form  and 
compass  of  knovvledge  are  bound  therein,  cannot  be  too 
strongly  condemned.  But  the  text-book,  used  as  a  con- 
venient guide  to  the  discussion,  and  re-enforced  by  wide 
reading  in  reference  books,  must  ever  remain  an  efficient 
means  of  instruction. 


Unifying  Qualities  and  Conditions  Secured. 

Efficient  co-operation,  involved  in  the  process  of  instruc- 
tion, requires  a  teacher  having  the  qualities  already  named 
to  face  the  pupils  under  the  conditions  specified.  Such  is 
the  condition  of  instruction  demanded  by  the  nature  and 
need  of  the  pupil.  Yet  this  is  not  usually  a  conscious 
demand  on  his  part.  But  his  unconscious  need  gives  law 
to  the  school  with  as  much  authority  as  though  he  advo- 
cate his  own  wants  in  logical  form ;  yet  public  sentiment 
must  voice  his  needs  for  him.  All  that  has  been  outlined 
must  be  in  the  thought  of  the  public,  and  brought  into 
reality  by  some  agency  beyond  teacher  and  pupil.  These 
of    themselves   could   not  secure    effective    conditions   of 


TIIK  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGA^^SM.  85 

co-operation.  After  the  teacher  is  enthroned  in  the 
school-room,  he  does  much  to  secure  and  maintain  con- 
ditions of  unity;  but  up  to  that  point,  and  continuous 
with  his  duty,  society  must  secure  and  maintain  the 
teacher  in  his  place  under  conditions  of  successful  labor. 
Schools  are  not  detached  from  society,  but  are  constantly 
conditioned  by  the  educational  thought  and  sentiment  of 
the  public.  If  the  school  goes  wrong,  it  must  ultimately 
be  charged  to  public  intelligence  and  purpose;  but  not 
immediately,  for  society  realizes  its  thought  and  wish 
through  executive  agencies.  What  this  thought  and  wish 
should  be  1  have  tried  to  deduce  in  the  two  preceding 
chapters.  After  these  conditions  have  been  clearly  defined 
in  thought  and  purpose,  it  yet  remains  to  realize  them; 
therefore  the  next  step  in  the  evolution  of  the  school  is 
to  secure  executive  agencies  to  institute  and  maintain  the 
school,  giving  rise  to  the  problem  of  school  supervision. 

From  the  two  factors  in  the  school  process,  discussed 
in  the  two  foregoing  chapters,  it  is  obvious  that  school 
supervision  has  two  quite  distinct  phases, — one,  that  of 
supervising  the  conditions  of  instruction;  the  other,  that 
of  supervising  instruction  itself.  The  first  is  chiefly  a 
business  function,  but  it  has  also  a  professional  asi)ect; 
for  the  conditions  of  instruction  must  be  interpreted  in 
order  to  supply  them  intelligently.  The  second  requires 
strictly  expert,  professional  skill.  Wliilc  these  two 
functions  have  usually  been  performed  by  a  single  person 
called  superintendent,  city  or  county,  it  is  hoped  that, 
in  due  course  of    differentiation,   there   will  arise  soon 

SIAIE  NORMAL  SCHOOL 


86  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

distinct  agencies  for  the  distinct  functions.  But  whether 
these  two  functions  be  exercised  by  one,  or  located  in 
separate  agents,  they  must  be  kept  quite  distinct  in 
thought,  both  for  clearness  of  discussion  and  efficiency 
of  action. 

Supervision  of  Instruction.  —  The  aim  of  supervision  of 
instruction  is  to  secure  the  proper  qualities  in  the  teacher. 
The  true  teacher  requires  of  himself  the  qualities  the 
pupil  demands;  but,  until  he  is  a  true  teacher,  he  has  not 
the  knowledge  and  the  spirit  to  make  such  requirement. 
Considering  the  weakness  of  human  nature,  it  would  not 
be  safe  to  trust  those  interested  to  decide  for  themselves 
the  question  of  fitness  for  admission  into  the  profession. 
There  must  be  some  one  competent  and  trustworthy  to 
voice  the  unconscious  demands  of  the  child,  and  check, 
as  would  the  child,  the  admission  of  the  unwortliy  and 
incompetent.  This  becomes  less  necessary  as  the  pupil 
approaches  maturity;  college  and  university  students  can 
largely  be  trusted  to  defend  themselves.  Under  the 
elective  system  they  starve  out  the  indifferent  teacher; 
yet  protection  here  would  be  timely,  in  preventing  the 
student's  starvation  along  with  that  of  his  teacher. 
Neither  can  the  public,  who  create  and  support  the  school 
by  a  strong  educational  sentiment,  specif}^  the  needs  of 
the  student  definitely  enough  to  guide  in  securing  the 
proper  qualities  in  the  teacher.  The  general  theories  of 
the  public  are  too  crude  and  indiscriminating  to  specify 
exactly  what  is  needed.  And  if  this  were  not  true, 
function  must  be  located  to  be  executed. 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.  87 

This  one,  to  stand  tor  the  pupil  as  over  against  the 
teacher,  and  to  define  and  voice  the  intelligence  of  the 
public,  must  be  selected  out  of  the  ranks  of  the  teachers 
themselves;  for  there  is  required  of  him  the  high- 
est degree  of  the  same  kind  of  qualifications  as  that 
already  described  for  the  teacher.  He  must  secure  the 
qualifications  in  the  teacher  required  by  the  growing  life 
of  the  pupil;  and  for  this  he  needs  the  same  sympatliy  for 
the  pupil,  and  the  same  insight  into  his  life,  as  required 
of  the  teacher.  He  has  the  function  of  the  teacher  raised 
to  the  second  power.  He  teaches  through  the  teacher; 
and  from  the  fact  that  he  can  test  and  guide  many 
teachers,  his  influence  on  the  pupil  is  multiplied  many- 
fold  beyond  that  of  direct  instruction. 

In  the  process  of  evolution  the  superintendent's  function 
becomes  entangled  with  business  which  does  not  belong  to 
a  teacher.  But  he  is  always  properly  classed  as  a  teacher; 
and  when  evolution  lias  done  its  perfect  work,  he  will  be 
restricted  to  the  supervision  of  teachers.  The  fact  that 
so  large  a  number  who  are  called  superintendents  devote 
themselves  cliiefly  to  the  business  and  political  interests 
of  tlie  school  is  incidental  to  the  situation;  and  no  indica- 
tion that  such  is  the  normal  and  final  condition  of  things. 
The  business  side  of  the  school  must  receive  atttention; 
and  since  the  superintendent  is  not  always  full}'  dilVer- 
entiated  in  his  preparation,  he  devotes  himself  to  the 
business  phase  of  school  work,  it  being  more  tangible  and 
less  rigid  in  its  requirements.  At  present  the  super- 
intendent  has    combined    in   him   both    functions,    giving 


88  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

most  emphasis,  perhaps,  to  business, — such  as  looking 
after  supplies,  or  inspecting  attendance  and  promotion 
records  —  the  business-educational  part  of  the  program. 
Since  there  must  be  a  business  man,  those  wlio  have  more 
taste  and  skill  for  the  external  affairs  of  the  school  should 
be  restricted  to  that  department  of  work,  leaving  to  those 
who  have  the  more  highly  specialized  professional  skill 
the  work  of  supervising  instruction. 

Such  differentiation  is  rapidly  going  on,  and  in  man}- 
schools,  although  not  yet  legally  recognized,  it  has  virtu- 
ally taken  place.  Superintendents,  overburdened  with 
business  alfairs,  or  feeling  unsafe  in  assuming  to  direct 
scientific  instruction,  are  securing  supervisors  of  primary 
work  and  of  special  subjects,  and  also  the  aid  of  an 
assistant  superintendent  who  exercises  general  super- 
vision over  instruction.  While  law  can  do  but  little  to 
hasten  any  form  of  social  progress  till  that  progress 
becomes  largely  an  accomplished  fact  there  is  a  stage  in 
the  process  when  legal  recognition  gives  instant  relief  to 
the  struggling  forces.  This  relief  has  been  felt  in  the 
school  of  Cleveland,  Ohio,  which  recently  took  the  final 
step,  the  superintendent  receiving  the  legal  title,  Super- 
intendent of  Instruction,  the  business  management  being 
intrusted  to  a  Director.  These  receive  equal  salaries, 
and  have  absolute  power  in  their  respective  functions,  the 
superintendent  being  appointed  for  life,  or  during  good 
behavior. 

It  seems  reckless  to  give  a  superintendent  absolute 
power.      Without  a   check,    is   there    no   danger   of    his 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.       8'J 

becoming  autocratic,  and  defiantly  independent?  The 
•  system,  however,  instead  of  being  autocratic,  is  strictly 
democratic.  Every  child,  parent,  and  educational  interest 
stands  in  direct  touch  with  the  superintendent.  He  must 
shape  his  conduct  from  the  standpoint  of  the  child,  as 
reflected,  it  may  be,  through  the  parent;  he  must  justify 
his  theory  and  his  practice  before  the  highest  court  of 
public  appeal,  — the  })eople  themselves.  A  superintendent 
who  serves  a  board  may,  knowing  its  personal  make-up, 
ingeniously  fasten  himself  on  the  system  in  many  ways 
other  than  by  efficient  service  ;  but  when  he  comes  before 
the  educational  public,  he  must  address  himself  to  the 
business  in  hand. 

The  unlimited  superintendent,  with  man's  natural  love 
of  power,  might  become  intoxicated  if  it  were  not  for  the 
sobering  fact  of  fearful  responsibility.  It  would  seem 
that  such  a  position  would  be  eagerly  sought;  but  indeed, 
he  is  a  bold  man  Avho  makes  the  venture.  Kesponsibility 
is  always  commensurate  with  liberty  and  opportunity; 
and  fear  naturally  arises  with  the  tliouglit  of  absolute 
authority,  which  has  to  be  justified  by  him  who  enjoys 
tlie  authority.  If  the  child  has  a  poor  teacher,  the  child, 
parent,  and  public  can  say,  "You  did  it."  When  the 
teiuii'c  of  office  is  conditioned  on  good  behavior,  coupled 
with  personal  responsibility,  the  situation  is  such  as  to 
put  the  superintendent  on  good  behavior,  because  he  must 
always  face  his  own  deed.  If  his  deed  justifies  his  oppor- 
tunity, life  is  too  sliort  for  such  service;  if  not,  he  makes 
his  own  cause  for  remuval. 


90  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT 

While  the  situation  requires  all  the  pluck  and  self- 
assurance  a  superintendent  can  muster,  he  will  still  have 
a  large  balance  of  joy  in  the  opportunity  of  realizing 
cherished  ideals.  When  ideals  disturb,  there  is  no  elation 
of  life  so  great  as  that  arising  from  opportunity  to  realize 
them;  and  the  ecstasy  which  accompanies  the  labor  is  the 
sustaining  power  and  sufficient  reward  of  the  laborer.  A 
superinteudent  who  does  not  feel  deeply  the  burden  of 
responsibility,  does  not  comprehend  the  requirements  of 
his  vocation,  and  is  not  qualified  for  the  duties  before 
him.  But  if  the  hesitancy  thus  produced  is  not  overcome 
by  confidence  founded  in  a  firm  conception  of  the  educa- 
tive process,  and  by  the  hope  of  realizing  his  educational 
ideals  through  the  opportunit}'  offered,  still  more  should 
we  suspect  some  fundamental  defect  in  his  professional 
character. 

The  first  step  in  securing  the  proper  teaching  qualities 
is  that  of:  — 

Selectinfj  the  Teacher.  —  This,  aside  from  the  act  of 
teaching,  is  the  most  critical  function  of  the  organism. 
The  one  held  responsible  for  this  duty  must  know,  in  a 
scientific  and  professional  way,  the  necessary  qualifica- 
tions of  a  teacher;  and  besides,  must  have  that  devotion  to 
the  pupil  which  makes  him  firm  against  the  importunities 
of  the  unqualified,  Avhether  tlie}'  be  relatives,  friends,  or 
home  or  foreign  talent.  There  is  but  one  law,  and  this 
requires  that  the  best  available  teacher  be  secured,  else 
the  superintendent  robs  the  tax-payer,  and  murders  the 
child.      Under  the  most  favorable  conditions,  the  supply 


THE   LAW   EVOLVING   THE   ORGANLSM.  91 

of  well-prepared  teachers  is  always  much  too  small;  and 
to  further  limit  by  irrelevant  bases  of  choice  is  an  out- 
rage on  the  pupil  and  tlie  public.  The  greatest  ethical 
strain  of  the  system  occurs  at  this  point,  and  the  appoint- 
ing power  must  be  located  in  a  superintendent  of  rigid 
integrity  and  uncompromising  educational  convictions. 

Of  all  the  functions  strictly  belonging  to  the  superin- 
tendent, that  of  selecting  teachers  is  yet  prominently 
shared  by  the  board,  just  as  the  business  of  the  board  is 
shared  by  the  superintendent.  However,  the  long  con- 
tention of  the  superintendent  with  the  board  for  his 
professional  rights  has  left  with  the  board,  generally, 
only  tlie  privilege  of  formal  approval  of  the  superin- 
tendent's actions.  This  satisfies  the  board,  as  they  may 
still  claim  the  power:  while  the  superintendent  is  com- 
fortably screened  behind  the  board  assuming  his  action. 
The  superintendent  may  desire  the  evolution  to  go  no 
further;  but  this  would  be  to  permit  him  to  lescape  still 
tlie  responsibility  which  the  nature  of  the  organism 
requires.  He  must  exercise  the  appointing  power  un- 
disguised, if  he  expects  opportunity  for  the  highest  pro- 
fessional effort. 

The  first  test  of  a  superintendent,  city  or  county,  or  of 
a  president  of  a  college  or  university,  lies  in  the  kind  of 
teacher  i>ut  in  and  kept  in  the  school.  Xowliere  can  he 
show  better,  or  worse,  judgment ;  and  nowhcn-e  else  more, 
or  less,  of  earnest  educational  conviction  and  downright 
honesty  of  purpose.  Of  course  the  embarrassment  is 
great ;    for   always   the    supply    of   tcaclicrs,  of    the  kind 


92  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

demanded,  falls  far  short  of  the  demand.  Hence  the 
earnest  plea  for  professional  schools.  Such  schools  are 
doubly  grounded :  first,  in  the  necessity  for  the  individual 
to  prepare  himself  for  the  profession;  and  second,  in 
the  necessity  of  the  superintendent  in  securing  trained 
teachers.  These  complementary  forces  are  yet  to  work 
together  more  effectively  in  establishing  more  numerous 
and  more  efficient  schools  for  elevating  the  professional 
status  of  the  teacher.  The  purpose  of  such  schools  being 
to  train  teachers,  the  discussion  under  the  "  Unifying 
Qualities  in  the  Teacher  "  suggests  the  general  character 
and  scope  of  their  work.  At  this  point  we  are  interested 
only  in  their  organic  place  in  the  system. 

After  the  superintendent  has  made  the  best  possible 
selection  under  the  limitations,  he  will  have  to  exercise 
still  another  function,   that  of:  — 

Aiding  the  Teacher. — Wliile  the  function  of  helping 
the  teacher  "belongs  to  the  superintendent,  this  fact  ought 
not  to  encourage  the  policy  of  employing  cheap  teachers 
and  a  high-priced  superintendent,  expecting  him  to  reach 
the  pupil  through  inferior  instruments.  Since  the  most 
efficient  superintendent  may  exhaust  his  efforts  through 
the  most  skilful  teachers  which  can  be  secured,  the  fore; 
going  policy  necessarily  lowers  the  standard  of  school 
work. 

If  direct  and  immediate  help  to  inefficient  teachers  could 
be  eliminated,  the  superintendent  still  has  the  problem 
of  the  continued  growth  of  those  teachers  who  were  very 
desirable  at  the  time  of  selection.      An  ideal  teacher  is 


THE   LAW   EVOLVING   THE   ORGANISM.  93 

not  one  who  has  reached  perfection,  but  one  at  the  upper 
limit  of  the  profession  pushing  vigorously  for  better 
things.  Such  a  one  is  most  dissatistied  witli  present 
attainments,  and  presses  most  eagerly  for  assistance.  At 
any  rate,  with  all  grades  of  teachers  the  superintendent's 
best  service  is  not  in  direct  suggestion,  but  in  general 
guidance  and  stimulus  to  higher  professional  life.  Tliere 
must  be  constant  unsettling  through  the  revelatitm  of 
liiglier  ideals  and  more  scientific  processes.  The  teacher's 
work  will  improve  only  under  rational  insight  into  educa- 
tive processes,  and  not  by  direct  advice  and  authority  of 
the  superintendent.  Teachers  are  too  prone  to  seek  what 
a  superintendent  desires,  in  order  that  tliey  may  conform 
to  his  wishes.  This  may  arise  from  lack  of  definite  con- 
ception of  the  work  in  hand,  or  from  a  desire  to  stand 
well  witli  authority.  And  superintendents  understand 
too  well  how  to  manipulate  this  weakness.  The  obedience 
which  the  superintendent  should  cultivate  in  the  teacher 
is  that  of  obedience  to  the  reason  in  the  educative  process. 
The  superintendent  should  completely  obscure  himself  as 
authority,  but  become  conspicuous  as  a  leader  of  thought. 
As  the  pupil  looks  to  the  teacher  for  the  higher  life  of 
culture,  so  should  the  teacher  look  to  the  superintendent 
for  the  higher  life  of  the  profession.  The  unity  between 
the  teacher  and  the  superintendent  slioulil  be  as  organic 
and  sympathetic  as  that  between  tlie  })upil  and  the 
teacher. 

But  it  must  not  be   inferred  that  a  superintendent  is 
superior   to    the    teacher;    liis    knowledge    and    skill  .are 


94  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

different  in  kind,  but  not  necessarily  in  degree.  A  super- 
intendent  may  serve  wisely  teachers  who  excel  hini  in  the 
details  of  their  work;  in  fact,  they  should  be  ex})ected  to 
so  excel  him.  Surely,  in  the  ideal  condition  of  things, 
there  will  be  as  much  general  culture  and  professional 
knowledge  and  skill  in  th(!  teacher  of  a  grade,  as  in  a 
superintendent  ;  but  the  special  preparation  will  be  dif- 
ferent. The  preparation  of  a  college  president  is  different 
from  that  of  a  member  of  liis  faculty;  but  this  does  not 
require  on  his  part  a  higher  degree  of  culture  or  profes- 
sional attainment.  The  unjust  discrepancy  between  the 
pay  of  a  superintendent  and  the  grade  teacher,  and  that 
between  a  president  and  member  of  his  faculty,  cannot  be 
justified  wholly  by  the  difference  in  the  qualifications 
required;  the  great  advantage  given  to  one  must  be  partly 
accounted  for  by  the  mere  accident  of  occupying  a  con- 
spicuous and  authoritative  position.  This  accident,  too, 
often  persuades  the  mediocre  superintendent  to  assume  an 
unbecoming  superiority.  Under  this  delusion  he  moves 
about  with  an  air  of  omniscience,  making  wise,  common- 
place remarks;  and  negative,  cutting,  personal  criticisms. 
In  the  intervals  he  looks  after  the  condition  of  blackboards 
and  school-rooms,  and  inspects  records  and  programs,  and 
does  whatever  easy  work  he  can  pick  up  to  keep  himself 
busy.  His  professional  criticisms  suggest  surcharged 
wisdom,  but  only  wound  and  embarrass  those  he  should 
help.  All  of  this  is  a  violation  of  the  law  of  unit}-, 
which  forbids  the  superintendent  to  stand  over  against  the 
teacher,  but  which  requires   the   closest   sympathetic  co- 


THE   LAW   EVOLVIxr.   THE   ORGANISM,  95 

operation  between  them.  As  tlic  teacher  operates  by  fusion 
with  the  pupil's  life,  so  the  superintendent  must  become  one 
with  the  teacher,  and  through  the  teacher  with  the  pupil. 
The  superintendent's  function  is  to  bring  the  teacher  into 
unity  with  the  pupil;  and  this,  since  tlie  teacher  must 
become  one  with  the  pupil,  he  cannot  do  except  by  unity 
with  the  teacher.  To  supervise  instruction  is  to  find  the 
way  through  the  teacher  to  the  pupil.  It  must  be  as  if 
the  superintendent  taught  the  pu})il  himself,  having  the 
practical  skill  of  the  teacher  added  to  his  broader  concep- 
tions of  theory.  Whatever  higher  conceptions  he  may 
have  of  the  life-giving  functions  of  the  subjects  to  be 
taught  must,  through  his  agency,  come  into  the  life  of  the 
pupil.  While  the  superintendent  teaches  at  long  range 
and  through  multiplied  instrumentalities,  he  must  touch 
the  life  of  each  individual  pupil.  It  is  too  common  to 
find  a  superintendent  with  good  theories  of  the  process  of 
instruction  in  a  given  subject  while  none  of  the  better 
things  are  seen  bearing  their  fruit.  A  superintendent  is 
not  a  superintendent  unless  his  best  conceptions  of  educa- 
tive processes  find  tlieir  way  through  the  teacher  into  tlie 
life  of  tlic  pupil.  This  docs  nrtt  mean  that  the  teacher  is 
to  become  a  mere  instrument  of  transmission,  but  must 
yet  remain  a  potent  personal  originating  force.  Here, 
as  before  suggested,  the  superintendent  can  di»  harm  by 
pushing  liis  tlicorics  (into  the  teacher  more  rapidly  than 
they  can  be  organized  into  an  originating  force  of  the 
teacher's  own.  While  the  teacher  is  the  superintendent's 
leverage  of   reaching   the  mass  of   pupils,  and  of  doing 


96  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

more  effectively  the  direct  work  than  he  himself  could  do, 
this  instrument  must  be  taken  in  no  mechanical  sense; 
but  as  an  original  throbbing  life,  charged  with  its  own 
message  to  the  pupil.  Ultimately,  what  the  superin- 
tendent is  held  for  is  the  kind  of  work  the  pupil  is  re- 
ceiving,—  not  his  elaborate  reports  and  published  theories. 
The  test  is,  whether  his  own  best  thought  of  teaching 
reaches  the  pupil  through  the  teacher  as  if  the  teacher 
himself  originated  it.  He  must  make  the  teacher  the 
active  force  and  applier  of  his  own  best  educational 
conceptions. 

Thus  the  same  law  of  unity  between  teacher  and  pupil 
holds  for  the  superintendent.  But  with  him  it  is  much 
more  difficult  to  fuliil ;  for  many  more  instrumentali- 
ties intervene  between  him  and  the  pupil.  Kot  only 
the  teacher,  but  also  the  material  conditions  of  the 
teacher's  labor,  and  often  the  political  machinery  of  the 
school,  intercept  his  movement  toward  the  pupil.  One  of 
the  great  problems  of  educational  reform  is  that  of  con- 
serving supervising  energy  -  This  consists  first  in  remov- 
ing the  temptation  for  the  superintendent  to  spend  his 
days  and  nights  in  securing  the  election  of  members  of 
the  school  board  who  will  serve  his  personal  ends,  and 
after  election  to  redouble  his  diligence  to  manage  them 
instead  of  the  school.  The  next  step  is  that  of  relegating 
to  business  men  and  clerks  the  business  and  routine  side 
of  school  Avork,  so  that  the  superintendent  must  justify 
himself  by  bis  own  special  work,  rather  than  by  a  multi- 
tude of  indefinite  duties  cleverly  performed.     And  lastly, 


THE   LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISiL  97 

there  must  be  selected  a  superintendent  with  a  clearl_y 
defined  educational  character,  rather  than  a  man  of  hetero- 
geneous and  conflicting  elements  required  in  dealing  with 
the  concrete  situations  of  business  and  polities,  while 
managing  the  educational  interests  of  the  school.  Thus 
might  we  hope  to  find  more  uniformly  men  of  commanding 
eminence  filling  the  school  position,  of  all  others  most 
potent  for  good,  because  widest  and  most  searching  in  its 
influence. 

Supervising  Conditions  of  Instruction.  —  Wliile  the 
business  agent  is  supposed  to  be  skilled  in  providing 
the  necessary  conditions,  the  teacher  and  superintendent 
must  specify  them;  for  one  Avho  does  not  know  the  educa- 
tive process  cannot  specify  the  conditions  of  that  process. 
Thus  the  business  agency  of  the  school,  which  selects  and 
authorizes  the  teacher  and  superintendent,  in  turn  becomes 
subj(^ct  to  the  direction  and  authority  of  that  teacher  and 
su{)erintf'ndent.  Tlirough  the  organic  relation  of  condi- 
tions to  the  teaching  act,  the  teacher  must  keep  before  the 
board  the  conditions  next  most  needed,  that  school  funds 
may  be  most  effectively  distributed.  Boards  waste  muoli 
in  buying  and  contracting  at  random,  and  under  the  per- 
suasion of  interested  agents.  A  board  acts  ill-advisodly 
in  buying  six  tellurian  globes,  when  a  dictionary  lias  ni)t 
been  su})plied.  The  (piestiou  is  not  what  is  a  good  tiling 
for  a  school,  but  wliat  is  now  most  needed.  Only  the 
teacher  and  the  superintendent  can  be  expected  to  know 
this;  and  it  is  their  duty,  through  a  knowledge  of  the 
conditions  as  organized  and  working  to  the  teaching  act, 


98  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

to  keep  before  the  proper  authorities  the  most  effective 
ways  of  expenditure. 

But  while  the  teacher  knows  what  is  needed,  he  cannot 
be  expected  to  procure  it.  He  should  know  the  ajipoint- 
ments  of  a  school-house,  and  tliat  it  should  be  kept  in  a 
cleanl}'  and  orderly  condition;  but  he  cannot  be  expected 
to  act  as,  janitor  or  architect,  or  to  enter  into  business 
relations  with  them.  At  this  point  arises  the  need  of 
special  business  knowledge  and  skill,  and  calls  for  a  new 
organ  in  the  system. 

The  differentiation  of  this  function  and  that  of  super- 
intendent has  already  been  discussed.  The  business  side 
of  the  school  process,  as  well  as  that  of  the  supervision 
of  instruction,  is  one  of  the  professional  aspects  of  school 
work,  and  should  be  dignified  by  a  salaried  official.  What 
has  been  said  touching  the  opportunity  and  responsibility 
of  a  differentiated  superintendent,  holds  with  as  much 
force  for  a  differentiated  school  director.  If  money  is 
wasted  or  a  contract  fraudulently  filled,  the  responsible 
source  can  be  directly  located.  A  man  whose  profession 
is  to  supply  conditions  of  school  work  is  apt  to  use  all 
diligence  in  keeping  his  trust;  but  if  he  serve  incidentally, 
as  a  citizen  with  other  citizens,  interest  and  responsibility 
are  at  lowest  tension. 

In  this  and  the  previous  discussion  of  the  differentiation 
of  the  supervising  forces,  and  the  separate  location  of 
functions  in  superintendent  and  director,  I  have  not,  of 
course,  described  the  actual  conditions  of  things,  but  only 
the  ideal  order  of  evolution,  which  is  already  indicated 


THE  LAW  EVOLVING  THE  ORGANISM.  99 

in  advancing  types  of  the  system.  Only  by  speaking  to 
the  ideal  can  the  discussion  be  practical.  The  principle 
of  guidance  for  the  director  of  a  country  school,  the  town- 
ship trustee,  or  the  school  board  of  a  village  or  city  must 
be  found  in  their  ideal  relations  to  the  teaching  process, 
whicli  requires  the  distinct  embodiment  in  a  specialized 
officer.  AVhether  things  are  so  or  can  now  be  made  so, 
is  not  the  question;  but  what  is  the  ideal  requirement  of 
the  law  of  the  school,  so  that  the  duty  nuiy  be  clearly 
discerned,  and  as  fully  performed  as  entangling  relations 
permit.  If  the  genesis  of  the  organism  under  the  law 
moves  inevitably  to  the  differentiation  of  the  supervising 
function  into  tliat  of  superintendent  and  director,  we  have 
the  most  significant  fact  for  the  immediate  guidance  of 
all  school  officers,  and  for  giving  future  trend  to  the 
organism.* 

Basis  and  Limitations  of  Supervision.  —  Tublic  opinion 
is  both  the  basis  and  limitation  of  supervision.  The 
director,  appointing  the  superintendent  by  the  approval 
of  a  board  who  represent  the  people,  is  the  immediate 
connecting  link  between  the  school  and  public  sentiment. 
But  when  appointed,  the  superintendent  shares  the  medi- 
ating function  between  the  school  in  its  concrete  reality 
and  public  opinion.     These  special  executive  agents  serve 

^  Since  completinf:j  this  discussion,  the  Report  of  the  Committee  of  Fif- 
teen lias  appeared,  coutaininf^  a  sub-report^  on  "  Tiie  <  >rgani/.ation  of  City 
School  Systems."  This  sul)-report  is  a  more  comprehensive  statement 
and  a  stronger  enforcement  of  tiie  ideal  here  presented  than  I  liave  been 
able  to  make. 


100  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

under  the  legislative  action,  which  emanates  from  society 
as  a  whole.  While  insisting  that  executive  function  mast 
be  centralized  in  a  single  officer,  it  is  also  recognized  that 
a  widespread  and  intelligent  school  sentiment,  from 
which  may  come  wise  school  legislation,  is,  after  all, 
the  real  basis  of  the  school.  The  more  people  who  take 
an  active  interest  in  scliool  the  better.  Diffusion  of 
educational  sentiment  is  as  necessary  as  definite  location 
of  executive  function.  Wide  diversity  of  intelligent  con- 
viction, focused  in  unity  of  action,  is  the  only  means  to 
certain,  permanent,  and  valuable  results. 

The  executive  officers,  being  limited  by  the  conditions 
imposed  by  the  public,  cannot  be  held  responsible  beyond 
the  limits  of  opportunity  furnished.  Aside  from  lack  of 
general  encouragement  and  recognition  of  worthy  service, 
the  limitations  are  of  two  specific  kinds.  Society  may 
fail  to  supply  a  sufficient  number  of  competent  teachers, 
and  thus  force  the  superintendent  to  choose  inferior  ones; 
or  fail  to  supply  funds  sufficient  to  secure  the  best  talent 
when  found,  or  to  furnish  the  proper  conditions  for  effec- 
tive service.  The  superintendent  is  doubl}^  limited  over 
the  business  agent;  for  he  cannot  find  so  easily  what  he 
wants,  or  secure  it  when  found.  Besides,  it  is  much 
easier,  it  seems,  to  secure  funds  to  supply  the  material  . 
conditions  of  the  school  than  to  secure  the  best  profes- 
sional service.  The  former  is  more  tangible  and  con- 
spicuous. A  teacher  i&  supposed  to  be  a  teacher,  and 
that  is  the  end  of  the  matter.  The  distinctions  in  finer 
qualities,  which  are  vital  to  the  pupil,  are  not  patent  to 


SCHOOL  MANAGEMKNT.  101 

the  public  gaze,  or  discernible  by  the  unskilled  eye.  The 
old  wooden  school-house  can  easily  be  replaced  with  a 
brick  structure,  with  turret  and  bell;  while  the  wooden 
teacher  remains  undisturbed.  Public  sentiment  must  be 
educated,  if  not  into  a  clear  discernment  of  professional 
qualifications,  into  a  faith  that  there  is  all  the  difference 
in  the  world  between  a  scientific  teacher  working  under 
proper  conditions  and  just  anybody  teaching  under  any 
conditions.  Schools  are  uot  good  just  in  proportion  to  the 
money  expended  on  them, —  not  at  all;  but  the  Avisest 
supervision  cannot  make  a  good  school  without  ample 
provision  of  funds,  nor  unless  society  furnishes  a  sufficient 
number  of  well-trained  teachers.  Public  sentiment  must 
be  so  quickened  that  it  will  not  tolerate  poor  schools, 
and  at  the  same  time  be  made  to  feel  responsible  for  the 
conditions  which  may  produce  good  ones.  The  school 
cannot  progress  out  of  touch  with  the  life  that  supports 
it.  Ultimately,  what  is  good  in  the  school  must  be 
accredited  to  society;  and  there,  too,  must  rest  the  blame 
for  its  shortcomings. 

And  now  we  can  retreat  no  further.  If  the  student  is 
not  realizing  himself  daily,  we  look  at  once  to  the  teacher, 
primarily;  and  then  to  the  conditions  under  which  he 
labors.  Having  located  the  evil  in  one  or  the  other  of 
these,  we  then  turn  to  hold  the  proper  supervising  agency 
responsible.  He  must  correct  the  evil,  or  show  that  the 
conditions  imposed  on  him  by  the  public  make  the  remedy 
impossible.  If  the  latter,  nothing  is  left  but  to  educate 
public  sentiment  and  wait  for  the  course  of  time  to  bring 


102  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

the  remedy.  In  this  it  appears  the  duty  of  every  educa- 
tional man  to  be  diligent  in  moulding  educational  senti- 
ment, and  in  giving  trend  to  educational  thought.  His 
professional  duty  is  not  circumscribed  to  the  school-room 
or  the  office ;  lie  must  face  about  and  voice  to  the  public 
their  own  latent  ideas  and  purposes,  and  crystallize  their 
convictions  into  active  educational  forces. 


THE  ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW. 


While  the  organism  extends  out  to  tlie  limit  of  the 
school  consciousness,  and  includes  tlie  whole  of  society, 
the  focal  centre  of  the  organism  is  in  the  unity  of  teacher 
and  pupil;  and  the  work  of  the  organism  is  executed  in 
this  active  unity,  for  wliich  we  have  been  preparing. 
The  teacher,  witli  qualifications  as  before  enumerated, 
now  confronts  pupils  under  the  conditions  as  before  speci- 
fied; and  the  school  wliich  existed  only  in  the  thought 
and  purpose  of  society  becomes  a  coi'crete,  living,  moving 
reality. 

The  school  is  now  in  the  active  process  of  realizing  the 
instruction  for  which  it  was  organized;  but  in  tlie  process 
it  secures  an  end  not  in  the  idea  which  gave  birth  to  tlie 
organism.  "Wliile  the  school,  as  does  a  machine,  consumes 
much  of  the  energy  which  it  is  supposed  to  apply,  yet  it 
makes  good  the  loss  in  being  an  educative  force  in  and  of 
itself.  In  this  case  the  instrument  is  not  something 
apart  from  the  material  on  which  it  operates.  The  pupil 
to  be  taught  is  a  part  of  the  instrument  by  which  he  is 
taught;  the  institutional  life  is  his  own  life,  and  he  is 
necessarily  trained  into  certain  forms,  habits,  and  prin- 


104  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

ciples  of  ethical  conduct.  While  the  school  is  primarily 
organized  to  give  instruction  in  all  that  pertains  to  human 
life  and  human  welfare,  including  morals,  it  happens  that 
the  power  of  the  school  in  ethical  training,  inherent  in 
the  organism  itself,  more  than  compensates  for  the  friction 
of  the  organism;  and  this  must  be  taken  into  the  account 
when  estimating  educative  forces. 

The  organism,  then,  in  executing  the  law,  does  so  by 
serving  as  a  means  of  instruction;  and,  while  doing  so, 
it  trains  the  pupil  in  rational  self-control  and  in  the  spirit 
and  forms  of  institutional  life.  While  ethical  teaching 
belongs  to  the  regular  course  of  instruction ,  and  not  to  the 
subject  of  school  management,  the  ethical  training  which 
comes  from  eflficient  school  management  must  be  given  due 
prominence.  Both  results  —  instruction  and  ethical  train- 
ing —  are  secured  in  the  same  process ;  and  the  manage- 
ment which  is  best  for  one  is  most  efficient  for  the  other. 
While  for  clearness  of  discussion  they  must  be  treated 
separately,  and,  therefore,  one  before  the  other,  the 
co-existence  of  the  two  processes  must  not  be  forgotten. 
Since  instruction  is  the  initiative  force  and  the  basis  of 
the  movement,  it  is  proper  to  consider  first  the  organism 
as  executing  the  law  through  instruction. 

The  Organism  in  the  Process  of  Instruction. 

In  this  process  the  teacher  moves  in  unity  with  the 
school  as  a  whole,  or  in  sub-unity  with  parts;  as,  with 
class  studying  or  reciting. 


THE  UKGANISM  EXECUTING   THE  LAW.  lOo 

Unity    in    School    as     a    "Whole.  —  Many    things    the 

school,  as  a  whole,  join  in  doing,  —  such  as  devotional 
exercises,  gymnastics,  passing  in  and  out  of  school-room, 
etc.  In  all  such  the  pupils  should  be  required  to  act  and 
think  as  one.  In  all  general  exercises  too  much  care 
cannot  be  taken  to  have,  at  the  outset,  the  attitude  of 
attention;  everything  else  must  be  put  aside.  The  desks 
should  be  cleared  of  needless  books  and  articles,  and  the 
whole  room  assume  the  appearance  of  unity.  When  an 
announcement  is  to  be  made,  or  a  direction  is  to  be  given, 
the  teacher  should  not  utter  a  word  of  it  till  sure  that 
every  one  is  attentive.  The  combined  movement  of 
putting  books  in  desks,  in  turning,  standing,  marching 
in  and  out  of  the  room,  is  conducive  to  both  order  and 
discipline,  as  well  as  being  a  great  economy  of  time. 

But  caution  is  here  needed.  IMachinery  should  not  be 
introduced  for  its  own  sake;  it  is  always  an  inner  unity 
that  is  desired,  and  formality  is  destructive  of  this.  The 
outer  form  must  be  a  necessity  of  the  inner  spirit.  The 
teacher  must  rationally  decide,  having  all  the  circum- 
stances and  conditions  of  the  particular  school  at  hand, 
just  what  mechanical  combinations  result  from  the  inner 
necessity.  The  teacher  cannot  take  this  from  imitation, 
or  from  any  statement  that  might  be  made;  for  special 
conditions  would  give  a  new  form  to  tlie  law  of  unity. 
A  country  school  with  all  grades  must  be  managed  ditfer- 
ently  from  a  room  of  two  grades  in  a  city  school,  or  from 
a  high  school  or  college.  All  that  is  needed  is  the  prin- 
ciple, and  common-sense. 


106  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

But  while  warning  the  teacher  against  machinery  foi 
its  own  sake,  danger  also  lies  in  the  other  direction, — 
too  little  attention  to  the  military  side  of  the  school.  It 
is  sometimes  urged  that  putting  away  books,  moving  in 
and  out,  etc.,  by  signals,  interferes  with  the  pupil's 
individuality.  We  ought  to  think  twice  before  being 
alarmed  at  this.  This  so-called  individuality  is  just 
what  needs  breaking  into.  The  child  will  be  a  member 
of  society  after  a  while,  and  then  will  have  to  fall  into 
line,  and  march  to  the  music  of  the  social  order.  Caprice 
and  wilfulness  cannot  be  interfered  with  too  much;  and 
the  requirements  of  strict  combination  take  square  issue 
with  these.  The  child  lacks  the  power  of  self-control, 
and  cannot  bring  himself  into  harmony  with  others.  This 
of  itself  would  be  ground  for  the  most  rigid  requirement 
of  unity,  to  say  nothing  of  facilitating  school  work  and 
making  instruction  effective.  But  this  anticipates  the 
ethical  value  of  school  management. 

It  must  not  be  supposed  that  when  a  teacher  passes  to 
class  work,  he  leaves  the  school  as  a  whole;  in  dealing 
with  the  class  he  must  not  drop  out  of  sight  the  Avhole  of 
which  the  class  is  a  part.  Securing  unity  in  the  school 
as  a  whole  is  a  continuous  process,  and  requires  constant 
tension  in  the  teacher.  Hence  the  teacher  needs  to  be 
well  reinforced  by  that  element  of  professional  spirit 
called  sensitiveness  to  unity  in  the  organism.  All  the 
conditions  enumerated  may  be  perfect,  but  they  will  go 
for  naught  unless  the  teacher  who  stands  before  that 
school  has  the  sense  and  habit  of  organic  unity  in  thought. 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  107 

He  must  constantly  grasp  the  school  into  unity  as  the 
work  proceeds;  and  this  requires,  as  already  discussed, 
a  power  of  a  definite  kind,  —  the  power  to  hold  all  the 
details  of  the  process  without  losing  sight  of  the  main 
issue.  The  teacher  must  have  a  potent  ideal  of  unity, — 
an  ideal  which  really  orders  everything  into  an  harmoni- 
ous system.  Unless  this  be  true,  the  school  goes  loose 
all  through,  and  the  teacher,  while  he  may  feel  vaguely 
that  something  is  wrong,  cannot  discern  definitely  what 
it  is.  With  this  feeling  of  unity  there  must  be  the 
power  to  grasp  the  classes  and  the  individuals  as  parts 
into  the  unity  of  the  whole.  The  curtain  must  be 
adjusted,  the  room  ventilated,  the  temperature  regulated, 
the  pupil  answered,  the  recitation  heard,  and  Avith  these 
the  whole  school  move  forward  in  the  mind  of  the 
teacher. 

And  now,  in  the  presence  of  tlie  pujjils,  the  teacher 
must  not  only  think  and  feel  the  school  as  a  unit,  but 
must  draw  the  pupils  into  unity  with  himself  by  the 
power  of  sympathy.  The  teacher  may  grasp  intellectually 
the  school  as  one;  and  yet,  in  doing  so,  may  hold  inipils 
off  at  arm's  lengtli.  Be  it  remembered  that  the  unity 
desired  is  that  between  mind  of  teacher  and  pujiil;  and 
this  can  be  secured  only  when  tlie  teacher's  symiialhy 
readies  out  and  ilia ws  the  ]Mi|iil  in  himself.  The  warnilh 
of  the  teacher's  life  nuist  be  felt  by  the  impil;  tliere  jinist 
be  no  cold  atmosphere  l)etween  them.  The  teaelier's  heart 
must  yearn  for  the  ])iii>irs  highest  g<)0(l.  If  the  teacher 
is  really  interested  in  tlie  lives  of  his  pujiils,  —  all  aglow 


108  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

with  s^'mpathy  in  their  struggles, — they,  by  the  law  of 
sympathy,  will  be  quickened  into  new  life  by  the  vital 
touch  of  mind  with  mind.  This  is  the  unity  sought,  and 
can  never  be  realized  by  any  except  by  the  sincere  and 
true-hearted  teacher. 

And  thus,  as  the  teacher  moves  forward  from  moment 
to  moment,  and  from  hour  to  hour,  with  the  complex 
organism,  and  with  multifarious  duties,  he  must  have  at 
all  times  an  abiding  consciousness  of  the  unity  of  the 
whole,  and  be  in  constant,  rigid  exercise  of  unifying 
power. 

The  pupils  before  the  teacher,  and  who  are  now  to  join 
with  him,  have,  through  difference  in  age  and  training, 
quite  diverse  abilities.  All  these  must  join  with  the 
teacher  in  the  act  of  instruction;  yet  the  difference  in 
ability  may  be  so  great  that  all  cannot  join  in  the  same 
act,  thus  requiring  the  teacher  to  perform  different  acts  in 
adaptation  to  different  classes  of  pupils.  This  introduces 
the  most  distressing  problem,  especially  in  the  country 
schools,  with  which  the  teacher  and  superintendent  have 
to  deal,  —  namely,  that  of  classification  and  gradation, 
which,  together,  constitute,  in  the  restricted  sense,  school 
organization.  Hence  there  must  be,  preparatory  to  the 
actual  teaching,  and  continuous  with  it,  the:  — 


Organization  of  the  School. 

Organization  has,   primarily,  reference  to   the  relation 
of  pupils  to  teacher,  and  not  to  the  relation  of  pupils  to 


SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT.  109 

each  other;  the  resulting  secondary  arrangements  among 
pupils  is  of  little  or  no  consequence.  This,  like  grasping 
the  school  as  a  whole  wliile  conducting  the  recitation,  is 
a  process  continuous  witli  instruction.  A  school  organ- 
organized  does  not  remain  so,  but  from  day  to  day  needs 
constant  re-adjustment.  The  yearly  paroxysms  of  ex- 
aminations and  promotions  do  not  indicate  the  contin- 
uous and  healthful  re-adjustment  required  by  the  law  of 
unity. 

A  school  is  organized  when  pupils  are  classed  and 
graded,  and  when  the  movement  of  the  whole  is 
programmed. 

Classification.  —  All  pujjils  who  join  with  the  teacher 
in  the  same  act  at  the  same  time  form  a  class;  when  this 
class  is  thought  of  as  joining  with  the  teacher  in  a  series 
of  acts  in  the  development  of  a  subject,  it  is  called  a 
grade.  Thus  a  grade  and  a  class  are  one  and  the  same 
thing,  differing  only  in  the  view  taken;  in  the  class  the 
learning  acts  are  viewed  as  simultaneous,  while  in  the 
grade,  learning  acts  are  viewed  as  successive.  The  same 
group  of  pupils,  viewed  in  the  two  relations,  forms  both 
the  class  and  the  grade. 

A  class  is  the  result  of  an  organization,  and  not  itself 
an  organization.  Organization  is  the  co-operative  rela- 
tion between  teacher  and  pupil.  Several  pupils  may 
co-operate  —  be  organized — with  the  teacher  at  the  same 
time.  These,  having  the  same  attributes  of  co-operating, 
form  a  class,  —  just  as  birds  having  the  same  attribute, 
blue,  form  a  class,  blue  birds.     Class  unity  is  thus  inci- 


110  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

dental,  and  of  no  direct  educational  service  further  than 
that  of  indicating  the  organic  unity  between  teacher  and 
pupil.  The  latter  is  primary  and  must  be  secured,  at 
whatever  cost  to  external  uniformity  in  classification. 
The  ignoring  of  this  distinction,  and  forcing  external  class 
unity,  is  the  source  of  all  the  evils  of  the  class  system. 
Organic  unity  may  prevent  the  uniform  constituency  of  a 
class  as  the  teacher  changes  from  one  subject  to  another. 
A  pupil  is  a  member  of  a  class  by  virtue  of  his  unity  with 
the  teacher;  his  connection  with  the  particular  members 
of  the  class  is  a  matter  of  indifference.  The  first  is  vital; 
the  second  formal. 

Therefore  such  pupils  as  can  join  with  the  teacher  in 
a  given  line  of  thought  should  constitute  a  class.  These 
are  determined  not  only  by  the  qualifications  of  the 
pupils,  but  by  the  number  the  teacher  can  grasp  in  the 
process  of  instruction.  The  teacher  has  come  to  instruct 
more  than  one  at  a  time  under  the  force  of  economy,  and 
not  under  the  command  of  an  educational  principle. 
Whatever  gain  there  may  be  in  class  association,  this  is 
not  taken  as  a  determining  principle  of  instructing  many 
at  once.  Certainly  the  overcrowded  condition  of  classes 
can  only  be  explained  on  financial  grounds,  as  illustrated 
by  the  difference  between  the  size  of  classes  in  an  endowed 
university  and  in  a  private  school  supported  by  the  tuition 
of  students. 

The  difficulty  of  instructing  by  classes,  both  because  of 
number  and  inequality  of  pupils,  and  by  further  reason 
of  the  abuse  of  the  class  system,  has  caused  a  reaction  in 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE  LAW.  Ill 

favor  of  the  old  plan  of  individual  instruction, — as,  for 
instance,  in  I'ueblo,  Col.,  where  the  pendulum  has  made 
its  complete  rebound.  Individual  instruction  is  the 
newest  current  topic  touching  the  question  of  classifica- 
tion. The  assumption  is  that  classification  necessarily 
opposes  efficient  instruction.  Since  no  two  pupils  are 
exactly  alike  in  knowledge  and  power,  wlien  the  teacher 
adjusts  his  mind  to  one  it  is  not  exactly  adjusted  to  the 
other.  Hence  perfect  organization  seems  to  destroy  the 
class  altogether;    but  this  is  only  a  seeming. 

The  practicability  of  individual  instruction  is  question- 
able, and  closer  analysis  makes  it  appear  undesirable. 
The  reaction  against  class  instruction  comes  largely  from 
the  abuse  of  the  system,  ami  not  from  objections  inherent 
in  the  system  itself.  When  classification  and  gradation 
were  new  features  of  the  school  system,  naturally  they 
were  exalted  into  ends  to  which  the  pupil  was  means. 
Mechanical  system  compressed  the  free  life  of  the  pupil, 
and  classification  was  censured  for  the  sins  of  uniformity. 
The  abuse  of  the  systeni  must  not  condemn  it,  and 
its  inherent  difficulties  may  be  offset  by  its  inherent 
advantages. 

The  assumption  that  class  instruction  is  not  individual 
instruction  insinuates  itself  through  the  opposition  of 
terms, — class  and  individual.  All  instruction  must  be 
individual  instruction.  To  teach  a  class  is  to  teach  the 
individuals  composing  it,  and  not  some  substituted  abstrac- 
tion. It  is  possible  to  form  a  class  so  that  the  needs  of 
each  member  may  be  as  fully  met  as  if  each  had  his  owd 


112  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

teacher.  Quite  a  wide  range  of  ability,  especially  in 
upper  classes,  is  consistent  with  individual  instruction 
in  classes.  Absolute  uniformity  is  necessary  only  for 
those  teachers  who  force  pupils  to  square-inch  text-book 
results;  but  the  teacher  who  puts  flexible  and  living 
problems  to  the  class  may  engage  strong  pupils  to  their 
utmost  capacity,  while  the  weakest  work  to  advantage. 
In  a  town  school  of  five  hundred  pvipils,  a  class,  as  large 
as  any  class  should  be,  can  be  formed  of  pupils  so  nearly 
equal  in  ability  that  the  teacher  who  properly  assigns 
work  will  experience  no  inconvenience  in  teaching  them; 
but  rather  will  feel  reinforced  by  the  enlarged  complex 
life  and  spirit  of  the  class. 

The  Pueblo  plan,  as  described  in  the  "Educational 
Review,"  February,  1894,  while  challenging  discus- 
sion in  its  details,  and  in  the  principle  assumed,  sounds 
the  true  keynote  of  organization  in  the  following  para- 
graph :  — 

"The  fundamental  characteristic  of  the  plan  on  which 
the  schools  are  organized  is  its  conservation  of  the  indi- 
vidual. The  pupil  is  placed  purely  with  reference  to 
where  he  can  get  the  most  good  for  himself;  he  works  as 
an  individual,  progresses  as  an  individual,  is  promoted  as 
an  individual,  and  is  graduated  as  an  individual.  The 
ordinary  nomenclature  of  schools  is  continued  for  con- 
venience; but  the  school  system  is  one  of  flexibility,  per- 
mitting pupils  to  pass'  from  working-section  to  working, 
section  as  may  be  expedient.  The  perplexities  relative 
to  class  intervals  have  disappeared,  because  there  is  no 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW.  113 

mechanical  classification.  In  appellation  the  term  junior 
or  senior  may  be  used ;  but  such  term  does  not  locate  the 
individual  any  more  than  the  name  of  a  division  of  a 
railroad  locates  the  exact  position  of  a  particular  train. 
For  working  purposes  the  pupils  are  grouped  in  working- 
sections;  but  the  members  of  a  working-section  are  not 
necessarily  doing  the  same  work,  or  rather  they  are  not 
doing  the  same  work  simultaneously.  In  brief,  the  school 
is  both  graded  and  ungraded,  — graded  in  so  far  as  applies 
to  its  plan  of  work,  but  ungraded  in  its  accommodation  of 
the  individual." 

This  is  new  and  refreshing  in  contrast  with  tlie  stifling 
system  of  mechanical  uniformity.  Yet  let  it  be  noted  that 
this  cannot  be  a  rude  jostling  and  misplacing  of  the  old. 
The  new  is  generally,  if  not  always,  a  return  to  that 
which  is  older  than  the  old  with  wliicli  it  is  in  conflict. 
Since  there  is  nothing  new  under  the  sun,  the  new  is 
really  the  old.  The  "I'ueblo  plan"  is  both  new  and  old: 
it  is  new  in  being  a  protest  and  a  reaction  against  the 
abuses  of  the  graded  system;  it  is  old  in  tliat  the  plan  is 
one  of  individual  instruction.  Some  thirty  years  ago  the 
"  'Possum  Kingdom  School "  was  tauglit  on  the  Pueblo 
plan, — pupils  without  classification  re(!eiving  individual 
aid.  I  speak  of  no  fictitious  school,  but  one  named,  in 
those  days  innocent  of  methods  and  terminologies,  not 
after  its  cliaracteristic  mode  of  instruction,  but  after  tlie 
characteristic  animal  of  the  dense  forest  in  which  the 
school  was  located.  If  the  teacher  of  that  school  should 
chance  upon  tlie  Pueblo  plan,  he  would  exclaim:  "What 


114  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

have  you  teachers  been  about  all  these  years?  Haven't 
you  known  all  tlie  time  that  you  must  teach  the  pupil,  — 
the  individual  pupil?  Sorry,  indeed,  that  I  did  not 
write  up  the  'Possum  Kingdom  plan  thirty  years  ago, 
and  hasten  the  arrival  of  the  great  doctrine  of  individual 
instruction. 

From  the  individual  plan,  through  gradation  and  classi- 
fication, back  to  the  individual  plan,  —  from  'Possum 
Kingdom  to  Pueblo, — what  does  it  mean?  Certainly  it 
means  a  check  on  the  abuses  of  the  graded  system;  and 
it  ought  to  mean  much  more;  namely,  that  class  instruc- 
tion, with  all  of  its  merits,  is  harmonized  with  the  needs 
of  each  individual  in  the  class.  It  should  mean  class 
instruction  and  individual  instruction  at  the  same  time. 
The  Pueblo  plan  must  not  be  too  literally  a  return  to  the 
'Possum  Kingdom  plan;  but  must  bring  a  contribution 
from  years  of  experience  with  the  graded  system.  Pupils 
may  be  taught  in  classes  without  interfering  with  the 
rights  of  the  individual;  and  thus,  indeed,  really  further 
the  interests  of  the  individual  more  than  can  be  done  by 
individual  instruction.  So  that,  while  we  protest  against 
the  abuses  of  arbitrary  gradation  and  classification,  we 
must  be  careful  to  add  what  is  good  in  it  to  the  old  plan 
of  individual  instruction.  The  new  must  return  to  the 
old  with  increase,  for  "through  the  ages  one  increasing 
purpose  runs,"  and  the  old  must  be  "widened  with  the 
process  of  the  suns." 

Gradation.  —  While  classification  requires  unity  of  each 
individual    in    the    class    with   the    teacher   at   a    given 


THE   ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  115 

moment  in  the  act  of  teaching,  gradation  requires  unity 
of  each  iudiviclual  with  the  teacher  in  successive  moments 
through  the  course  of  instruction.  The  first  is  a  simul- 
taneous unity;  the  second  a  successive  one.  The  same 
pupil  that  joins  with  the  teacher  at  a  given  moment  may 
be  unable  to  do  so  in  successive  moments;  because  pupils 
relatively  vary  in  ability  in  different  subjects,  and  from 
time  to  time  in  the  same  subject.  Gradation  thus  con- 
flicts with  permanence  and  uniformity  of  classification; 
but  not,  however,  with  true  classification;  for  true  classifi- 
cation requires  constant  re-adjustment  of  class  member- 
ship as  much  as  does  gradation.  As  a  school  is  truly 
classified  when  the  members  of  a  class  can  join  with  the 
greatest  profit  in  the  same  act  of  instruction,  so  a  school 
is  truly  graded  when  each  pupil  in  his  forward  movement 
follows  the  continuity  of  ideas  determined  by  the  natural 
growth  of  his  mind.  A  graded  school  is  not  a  school 
consisting  of  two  or  more  rooms  in  the  same  building; 
but  a  school  moving  over  a  system  of  ideas  graded  by  the 
pupil's  law  of  development.  Each  class  must  be  graded 
{gnuhis,  a  step);  must  move  by  an  organic  series  of 
steps. 

The  possibility  of  grading  country  schools  used  to  be 
questioned,  forgetting  that  it  was  impossible  to  do  any- 
thing else.  This  was  not  questioned  in  the  town  schools, 
because  the  different  rooms  of  the  school  building  made 
it  necessary  to  block  out  the  school  in  parts,  called  grades. 
This  is  the  most  superficial  and  mechanical  sense  of  gra- 
dation.    Closely  allied  to   it  is  the   notion  of  grades   aa 


116  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

being  the  time  distances  between  classes.  I^ot  the  school- 
xoom  now,  but  the  almanac,  make  the  gradation.  Grades 
were  supposed  at  first  to  be  classes  a  year  apart  in  prog- 
ress of  studies;  and  later  this  distance  was  shortened  to 
a  half  or  a  third  of  a  year,  the  essential  idea  all  the 
time  being  that  regularity  of  distance  in  the  course  if 
essential  to  the  graded  system.  From  this  resulted  the 
evil  practice  of  forcing  and  checking  the  natural  speed  of 
the  class;  feeling  that  all  system  is  destroyed  without 
adherence  to  mathematical  measurements  of  space  and 
time.  Thus  the  calendar  and  the  pages  of  the  text  usurp 
the  rightful  authority  of  the  law  of  development.  Since 
the  pupil's  growth  is  not  endogenous,  and  by  joints, 
gradation  by  the  periodical  joint  system  must  be  a  viola- 
tion of  the  pupil's  law  of  growth.  Whatever  limitations 
may  arise  from  practical  necessity,  these  must  not  give 
law  to  gradation,  but  themselves  must  be  adjusted  to  that 
law.  The  distance  between  classes  is  but  an  accidental 
result;  and,  taken  as  a  law  of  guidance,  can  but  work 
mischief.  The  only  safe  working  conception  is  that  of 
a  single  class,  or  pupil  for  that  matter,  thought  of  in 
continuous  process  of  growth  through  the  course  of 
instruction. 

The  first  step  in  gradation  is  to  arrange  the  elements 
of  subjects  into  naturally  developing  series  in  the  experi- 
ence of  the  pupil.  Certain  ideas  of  the  earth,  and  of  all 
other  subjects,  are  adapted  to  the  child  in  the  first  period 
of  his  course;  and,  because  of  the  acquired  ideas  and 
increased   abilities  of  the  first  period,    other    ideas  are 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTES'G  THE    LAW.  117 

adapted  to  liim  in  the  second  period;  and  so  on  to  the 
close  of  school  life.  Such  an  arrangement  of  ideas  in  all 
the  subjects  —  an  arrangement  from  a  small  centre  at  the 
beginning  of  the  school  course,  out  to  the  circumference 
at  the  close  of  the  course  —  constitutes  a  graded  course 
of  study.  The  development  of  such  a  course  belongs  to 
the  subject  of  instruction  rather  than  to  management ;  and 
has  been  discussed  in  "The  Philosophy  of  Teaching," 
under  the  topic,  "The  Process  as  a  Complex  Whole." 
The  course  of  study  is  nothing  but  the  process  of  teach- 
ing taken  in  its  entire  complexity,  — the  length,  breadth, 
and  depth  of  the  educative  process.  Gradation  of  pupils 
assumes  that  such  a  course  has  been  developed,  and  re- 
quires of  school  management  only  the  adjustment  of  j)upils 
to  that  course. 

Since  the  course  of  study  has  both  length  and  breadth, 
—  both  warp  and  woof,  —  pupils  have  to  be  adjusted  to 
both,  making  the  problem  of  gradation  doubly  difficult. 
The  pupils  who  may  move  forward  together  in  one  line 
may  not  always  be  the  same  pupils  who  can  best  move 
together  in  another  line.  Thus  the  lateral  movement 
in  the  course  may  re-adjust  the  longitudinal  movement. 
And  here,  for  the  sake  of  class  uniformity,  violence  is 
most  frequently  done  to  the  individual.  Not  gradation, 
but  uniformity,  requires  pupils  who  recite  together  in  one 
subject  to  recite  together  in  all;  or,  the  classes  in  one  part 
of  a  city  or  county  to  do  at  the  same  time  just  what  those 
in  another  part  are  doing.  No  educational  reason  can 
be  given  for  the  external  uniformity  of  two  schools;  or,. of 


118  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

the  corresponding  successive  classes  of  different  years  in 
the  same  school.  The  class,  because  the  individuals  are 
to  combine  in  the  teaching  act,  must  be  uniform  in  time  and 
in  the  general  preparation  of  the  lesson;  but  that  another 
teacher  should  be,  at  the  same  time,  moving  a  class  over 
the  same  part  of  the  same  subject,  is  not  required  by  the 
law  of  organization;  and  may  be  prohibited  by  that  law. 
Even  uniformity  of  text  is  not,  except  to  a  very  limited 
extent,  required  or  desirable.  The  teacher  who  is  free 
from  the  text,  being  possessed  by  the  subject,  will  find 
diversity  of  texts  quite  desirable;  except  when  examples 
for  drill  are  needed,  as  frequently  happens  in  arithmetic, 
grammar,  and  reading. 

The  inherent  diffiealties  of  classification  and  gradation 
are  great  enough  without  imposing  mechanism  and  uni- 
formity on  the  system.  The  teacher  will  have  enough  to 
do  to  see  that  all  the  pupils  in  a  given  class,  in  a  given 
subject,  without  reference  to  any  other  subject  or  any 
other  class,  are  so  nearly  of  equal  ability  as  to  join 
profitably  with  the  teacher  in  the  same  discussion.  The 
problem  is  thus  reduced  to  the  question  of  the  number 
of  classes,  and  of  having  strong  and  weak  pupils  in  the 
same  class.  In  many  cases  it  is  only  a  choice  between 
two  evils.  It  may  be  imj)0ssible  to  secure  the  condition 
required ;  but  the  ideal  to  be  striven  for  is  that  stated,  as 
against  mere  external  uniformity,  which  is  always  in 
conflict  with  true  organization. 

The  inherent  difficulty  is  much  less  in  city  schools;  but 
these  do  not  always  make  the  most  of  their  opportunity 


THE  ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW.  119 

for  close  classification.  It  often  happens,  for  instance, 
that  all  fifth-year  pupils  are  held  to  the  same  work,  even 
when  there  are  so  many  of  them  that  two  or  more  classes 
have  to  be  formed.  If  there  are  seventy-five  pupils  in  a 
fifth-year  grade,  so  that  tliree  classes  must  be  formed,  it 
is  far  better  to  gradually  collect  the  strong  pupils  in  one 
class,  the  weak  in  another,  and  those  of  medium  ability 
in  a  middle  class.  And  then  each  of  these  classes  should 
be  required  to  move  up  the  inclined  plane  only  so  rapidly 
as  the  strength  of  pupils  permits.  There  should  be  no 
straining  after  mile-posts.  No  matter  whether  a  class 
reach  a  prescribed  station;  let  the  point  reached  by  the 
close  of  the  term  or  year  be  noted  by  the  teacher,  and  the 
march  be  resumed  from  tliat  point  at  the  opening  of  the 
next  session.  This  somewhat  interferes  with  the  exter- 
nally beautiful  system,  but  it  favors  the  internal  unity 
sought.  Besides,  a  pupil  may  recite  in  different  classes 
within  the  limits  of  an  ideal  organization.  Unity  and 
proper  classification  may  require  a  pni)il  to  recite  read- 
ing in  a  fifth-reader  class,  and  arithmetic  with  fourth- 
reader  pupils  ;  even  should  such  interfere  with  the 
external  system. 

While  a  course  of  study  may  be  graded  apart  from  any 
giv^en  school,  the  external  gradation — the  adjustment  of 
pupils  to  the  course  —  cannot  be  made  till  the  particular 
school  is  given,  and  all  the  conditions  are  known.  When 
the  number  of  pupils  is  small,  and  distributed  over  all 
the  common-school  grades  of  work,  the  distribution  of 
pupils  differs  from  the  arrangement  required  by  a  school 


120  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

having  double  the  number  of  pupils  on  the  same  course 
of  work,  and  taught  by  two  teachers.  And  still  more 
will  the  variation  be  when  passing  to  a  village  school 
of  three  hundred  pupils,  taught  by  eight  teachers. 
Thus  the  arrangement  of  pupils  with  reference  to  the 
course  of  study  must  be  figured  out  when  all  the 
determining  facts  about  the  school  to  be  graded  are 
known.  To  show  the  method  of  doing  this,  I  may 
be  permitted  to  insert  an  illustration  from  "A  Graded 
Course  of  Study,"  published  in  188.3,  which  was  prepared 
for  a  school  in  a  small  city.  The  determining  facts 
were  these:  The  course  of  study  comprehended  twelve 
years,  —  from  primary  to  high  school  inclusive.  The 
attendance  was  about  six  hundred  and  fifty  pupils; 
and  these  were  taught  by  fourteen  teachers.  After 
spreading  out  the  course  of  study  as  a  basis,  and  hav- 
ing the  foregoing  facts  in  mind,  the  following  sketch 
is  given:  — 

"Now,  imagine  the  pupils  in  this  school,  in  an  un- 
broken procession  from  the  bottom  to  the  top  of  this 
inclined  plane,  toiling  upward,  each  doing  the  work  best 
suited  to  his  ability,  and  you  will  have  a  picture  of  a 
perfectly  graded  school.  But,  for  purposes  of  efficient 
instruction,  this  unbroken  procession  is  broken  into 
groups,  or  sections,  of  about  twenty  or  twenty-five  in 
a  group.  Of  the  six  hundred  and  fifty  pupils  in  this 
school,  there  are  twenty-six  such  groups ;  each  but  a  short 
distance  and  a  short  time  behind  the  other.  At  the 
bottom    of    the    inclined    plane    the    groups    are    nearer 


THE  ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW.  121 

together  than  at  the  top;  because  the  number  in  the 
procession  decreases  upward,  and  the  groups  would  be 
too  small  for  practical  purposes;  and  because,  also, 
pupils  of  a  wider  range  of  ability  in  the  upper  grades 
than  in  the  lower  can  be  taught  in  a  class,  A  few  weeks' 
difference  between  the  progress  of  a  pupil  and  of  a  class 
in  the  lower  grades  is  sufficient  to  prevent  the  pupil  from 
working  with  the  class,  while  this  would  not  be  true  in 
the  upper  grades. 

"For  convenience  these  groups  are  collected  into  still 
larger  groups.  Since  it  takes  the  average  pupil  about 
twelve  years  to  finish  the  course,  the  course  is  divided 
into  twelve  e(|ual  parts;  and  the  twenty-six  small  groups 
are  made  into  twelve  larger  ones.  This  gives  the  twelve 
grades  as  usually  spoken  of.  Each  of  the  first  six  of 
these  years,  or  grades,  is  composed  of  three  of  the  smaller 
classes  above  described;  the  seventh  and  eighth  of  these 
grades  are  each  composed  of  two  classes;  and  the  last  four 
of  one  class  each. 

"On  the  basis  of  the  kind  of  knowledge  gained  and 
faculties  exercised,  these  twelve  grades  are  made  into 
three  larger  groups,  called  departments;  each  consisting 
of  four  grades. 

"  For  all  of  these  divisions  we  have  this  diagram  of  the 
school.     Read  from  bottom  upward :  — 


122 


SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 


/  3.  Higrh  School 


o 
o 

o 

y2 


'4.  Twelfth  year  or  grade. 
3.  Eleventh  -year  or  grade. 
Department.  |  2.  Tenth  year  or  grade. 
1.  Ninth  year  or  grade. 


f .    ^.  ■,   ,  -,        ( Section  2, 

4.  Eighth  year  or  grade.     ■, 

( Section  1. 


Intermediate 
Department. 


3.  Seventh  year  or  grade. 


( Section  2. 


Section  1. 


(Section  3. 
Section  2. 
Section  1. 
(Section  3. 
Section  2. 
Section  1. 

f  rSection  3. 

4.  Eourth  year  or  grade.    J  Section  2. 

I  Section  1. 

fSection  3. 

3.  Third  year  or  grade. 


Primary 
Department. 


2.   Second  year  or  grade. 


1.  First  year  or  grade. 


Section  2. 
Section  1. 
Section  3. 
Section  2. 
Section  1. 
Section  3. 
Section  2. 
Section  1. 


THE   UKGAMSM    EXECUTING   THE   LAW.  l'S6 

"The  sections,  or  classes,  doing  a  year's  work  are  not 
necessarily  doing  the  same  term's  work,  as  befors  indi- 
cated; but  may  be  one  term  apart.  This  is  to  give 
flexibility  to  the  system.  Usually,  ull  tlie  pupils  of  any 
year  are  required  to  do  the  same  work;  but  this  forces 
very  unequal  pupils  into  the  same  classes,  and  makes 
promotions  and  demotions  less  practicable;  since,  if  a 
pupil  is  demoted,  he  must  fall  back  a  3'ear.  or  it'  promoted, 
he  will  have  to  skip  a  year.  Besides,  this  plan  is  entirely 
unnecessary,  except  when  a  grade  is  only  large  enough  to 
make  one  class.  Then,  we  are  to  think  of  each  section  of 
each  grade  working  independently  of  the  others,  and  doing 
the  work  best  suited  to  it.  This  gives  threefold  greater 
opportunity  for  classing  each  pupil  correctly,  than  if  all 
the  classes  of  one  grade  were  required  to  do  the  same  work. 

"Each  class  should  be  rcMpiired  to  stay  on  a  year's  work 
till  it  is  done.  It  often  hapiteus  that  a  slow  class  will 
need  a  year  and  a  term,  or  a  year  and  a  half,  in  Avhich 
to  do  a  year's  work.  Such  a  class  ought  to  remain  on  a 
year's  work  till  the  work  is  done,  but  need  not  remain 
in  the  same  room.  A  strong  class  may  finish  the  work 
in  less  time  than  assigned,  and  should  not  be  held  back  for 
slower  classes.  A  pupil  should  be  transferred  from  one 
class  to  another  at  any  time  when  it  is  best  for  the  pupil. 

"In  describing  each  class,  the  term  and  tlie  year  should 
be  given,  tlius:  third  term,  4's;  lirst  term,  5's;  meaning, 
respectively,  the  highest  class  in  the  fourth  3'ear,  and 
the  lowest  class  in  tlie  fifth  year.  Thus  should  a  class 
be  entered  on  the  class-record;  and  this,   witli  tlic  state- 


12-4  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

ment  of  the  work  of  that  class  in  this  course  of  study, 
will  enable  any  one  to  know  just  where  a  class  belongs, 
and  what  work  it  has  clone.  When  a  parent  receives  a 
card  stating  that  liis  cliild  has  passed  on  a  certain  term's 
work,  and  is  promoted  to  the  next,  by  reference  to  this 
course  he  may  have  a  definite  idea  of  his  child's  progress. 
This  will  enable  him  to  measure  that  progress,  not  by  the 
rooms,  nor  even  by  the  grades  passed  through,  but  hy 
the  field  of  knowledge  covered." 

The  foregoing  is- not  given  as  a  plan  for  any  one  to  follow, 
but  to  emphasize  the  principle  that  the  organization  of  the 
-school  must  be  kept  mobile  to  its  inner  life.  To  one  who 
is  accustomed  to  wind  up  the  machine,  and  to  trust  it  to 
run  itself  for  fixed  periods,  this  constantly  shifting  con- 
dition of  things  will  seem  unsafe  and  troublesome.  And 
troublesome  it  is,  for  no  fixed  plan  can  be  followed ;  no  two 
schools  are  alike ;  and  the  same  school  is  continually  shift- 
ing, requiring  constant  vigilance  and  nimble  judgment  on 
the  part  of  the  superintendent.  New  problems  are  ever 
arising,  whose  solution  cannot  be  anticipated.  For  in- 
stance, by  the  foregoing  scheme  of  organization  it  appears 
that,  in  passing  from  the  sixth  to  the  seventh  grade,  three 
classes  must  be  combined  into  two  ;  and  in  passing  from 
the  eighth  grade  to  the  high  school,  two  classes  must  be 
combined  into  one.  Now  these  combinations  may  have  to 
be  made  at  other  points  in  the  movement,  sooner  or  later. 
But  whenever  they  have  to  be  made  it  will  ever  be  a 
recurring  question  as  to  the  best  way  of  doing  it.  It  might 
happen  that  the  most  advanced  of  the  two  classes  to  be 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.  125 

combined  into  the  first  year's  work  of  the  high  school  could 
best  spend  the  time  in  a  general  review,  while  waiting  for 
the  lower  class  —  not  necessarily  the  weaker  one  —  to  com- 
plete the  requirements  for  liigh  school  admission.  Or,  this 
most  advanced  class  might,  say  at  the  beginning  of  the 
eighth  year's  work,  check  tlieir  speed  by  pushing  out  fur- 
ther into  details  of  their  subject  than  is  regularl}-  required  ; 
thus  checking  movement  to  reach  the  higli  school  at  the 
same  time  as  the  lower  class.  Or,  it  might  be  advisable  for 
the  class,  or  some  members  of  it,  to  have  a  vacation  for 
whatever  time  is  required  for  the  other  class  to  reach  the 
high  school ;  giving  to  such  members  of  the  class  as  desired 
directions  for  lines  of  private  reading  and  investigation, 
or  special  studies  in  school.  It  might  happen  to  be  best 
for  the  lower  class  —  which  may  be  the  stronger  of  the  two 
—  to  push  work  more  rapidly,  and  join  the  other  class,  even 
if  some  points  in  the  work  had  to  be  skipped.  Or,  some- 
thing of  all  of  these  might  have  to  be  done.  There  is  no 
end  to  tlie  possible  solutions  of  the  problems  which  may 
arise  under  a  flexible  system ;  and  the  superintendent  must 
be  constantly  in  the  movement ;  he  cannot  retire,  having 
fixed  the  system  to  run  itself  for  a  stated  period.  Of 
course  it  is  much  easier  to  manage  an  organization  fixed  in 
straight  and  hard  grooves.  It  is  a  simple  matter  to  require 
uniformly  all  classes,  or  groups  of  classes,  to  keep  one  year 
apart,  and  to  promote  yearly  by  examinations.  And  it  all 
looks  well,  too, —  so  regular,  so  uniform,  so  systematic  ;  no 
tinkering  with  a  machine  which  is  constantly  getting  out  of 
order.      But  life  is   not   mechanism  ;  the  school  is  not  a 


126  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

machine  ;  and  the  superintendent  is  not  a  stem-winding 
attachment. 

It  is  obvious  how  the  simple  fact  of  the  size  of  the 
school  modifies  the  foregoing  scheme.  If  the  school  should 
be  considerably  larger  than  the  foregoing,  consisting  of  two 
or  three  ward  schools  tlie  size  of  the  above,  the  three  sections 
might  continue  through  the  liigli  school.  If  this  larger 
school  should  be  in  one  building,  with  the  three  sections  in 
the  high  school,  then  there  would  be  more  than  three  sec- 
tions in  the  lower  grades  ;  and  tlie  problem  of  combinations 
would  arise  again ;  having  disappeared  with  two  or  three 
wards,  having  one  high  school. 

It  is  evident  also  that  had  the  number  of  pupils  in  this 
school  been  twice  as  large,  and  yet  taught  in  the  same 
building,  there  would  have  been  twice  as  many  divisions 
in  each  year's  work,  making  it  possible  to  have  classes 
only  one-half  a  term  apart.  But  this  would  yield  no 
great  gain  in  flexibility  of  grading,  because  it  will  be 
found  that  when  classes  are  only  one  term  apart,  the 
members  of  a  class  are  of  such  even  ability  that  the 
teacher  will  find  no  difficulty  in  satisfying  individual 
needs.  If  the  school  had  been  twice  as  large,  and  divided 
into  two  wards,  no  change  would  be  made  in  the  arrange- 
ment of  classes.  It  thus  seems  that  a  Avard  school  con- 
sisting of  about  five  hundred  pupils  below  the  high  school, 
and  taught  by  ten  or  eleven  teachers,  comes  close  to  the 
ideal.  A  system  of  city  schools  is  onl}^  a  multiplication 
of  such  school  units,  organized  into  the  centre  of  the  sys- 
tem,  — the  high  school. 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.  127 

If  there  had  been  only  two-thirds  as  many  pupils  in 
this  school,  and  taught  by  eight  teachers,  classes  would 
have  been  one-half  a  year  apart,  — which  would  have  been 
good,  but  not  so  good.  Especially  not  so  good  if  the 
two  classes  had  been  forced,  as  is  generally  done,  to  do  the 
same  work,  siiu[)ly  because  they  belong  to  the  same  year. 
Passing  below  this  attendance  and  teaching  force,  the 
difficulty  of  classification  increases  rapidly  j  and  becomes 
greatest  when  a  single  teacher  has  charge  of  all  grades 
covering  the  public  school  course  to  the  high  school; 
which  often  happens;  and  sometimes  advanced  classes 
are  added  for  good  count.  Tliis  is  the  most  abnormal 
and  stubborn  condition  with  wliich  the  teacher  has  to 
contend  in  organizing  iind  instructing  a  so-called  ungraded 
school.  Tlie  foregoing  standard  applied  will  accomplish 
all  that  can  be  accomplished;  and  the  teacher  must  not 
reproach  himself  for  not  being  able  to  do  the  imjiossilile. 
But  tlie  i'oi-egoing  standard  is  just  as  necessary  for  a 
teacher  in  such  unfavorable  conditions  as  if  serving  under 
ideal  ones.  The  whole  problem  is  to  secure  the  best 
compromise  between  number  of  classes  and  diverse  ability 
in  each  class. 

As  to  the  number  of  classes  for  a  teacher,  two  seems 
to  be  the  ideal;  for  each  class  moves  by  alternations  of 
study  and  recitation;  and  while  the  teacher  is  waiting  for 
a  class  to  prepare  work,  he  may  be  hearing  another  class 
recite.  No  problem  of  organization  is  more  easily  solved, 
theoretically,  than  the  proper  number  of  classes  for  a 
teacher;    but  none   more    difficult   of    practical   solution. 


128  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

And  the  two  classes  should  not  be  doing  the  same  work; 
not  only  to  secure  better  classification,  as  already  indi- 
cated, but  for  reasons  found  in  the  process  of  instruction. 
The  repetition  of  a  lesson  before  a  class  who  have  heard 
it  dulls  the  zest  of  both  teacher  and  pupils,  besides 
interfering  with  the  best  preparation  on  tlie  part  of 
pupils.  But  any  number  above  two  classes  is  an  inter- 
ference and  a  burden;  in  the  case  of  young  pupils,  because 
the  teacher  cannot  return  to  them  as  frequently  as  they 
need  attention.  The  preparation  time  is  longer  than 
they  can  profitably  use.  It  is  a  very  great  evil  for  a 
primary  pupil  just  entering  school  to  receive  attention  for 
only  four  short  periods  per  day,  the  teacher  each  time  hav- 
ing been  engaged  one  hour  with  three  or  four  other  classes. 
And  with  mature  pupils  the  evil  is  also  great,  because  it 
is  impossible  to  consider  the  subject  in  the  time  allotted. 
In  one  case  the  time  for  study  is  too  great;  in  the  other 
the  time  for  recitation  is  too  short.  Thus,  in  many  waj^s, 
the  number  and  diversity  of  classes  is  the  perplexing  and 
unsurmountable  difficulty  in  sparsely  settled  rural  dis- 
tricts. In  a  city  the  fault  is  not  in  the  number  of 
classes,  nor  lack  of  opportunity  to  classify  properly,  but 
in  the  size  of  classes.  The  ideal  is  to  have  two  classes  of 
proper  size,  and  a  short  distance  apart  in  subject-matter. 
While  insisting  that  they  should  be  apart,  the  distance 
must  not  be  great.  A  teacher  could  not  easily  adjust 
himself  alternately  to  a  primary  and  a  high-school  grade. 

After  the  pupils  are  classified  and  graded,  they  must 
be  continually  re-adjusted  as  instruction  proceeds.     This 


THE  ORGANISM   EXECUTING  THE   LAU'.  129 

is  accomplished  by  promotions  and  demotions,  either  by 
classes  or  by  pupils.  A  class  progressively  and  imper- 
ceptibly promotes  itself,  and  the  formal  act  is  nothing 
more  than  change  of  name;  but  the  single  pupil  is  put 
back  or  forward  with  another  class.  The  old  question 
of  when  to  promote  or  demote  a  pupil  is  solved  by  the 
foregoing  discussion.  Undoubtedly  a  pupil  should  be 
changed  from  one  class  to  another  just  as  soon  as  his 
interest  will  thereby  be  subserved.  There  is  no  edufa- 
tional  reason  for  consulting  tlie  almanac  in  this  matter. 
Not  the  moon's  phases,  but  the  most  effective  unity  is  the 
criterion;  and  let  the  step  be  taken  as  soon  as  the  need 
is  discerned. 

The  necessity  for  promoting  or  demoting  a  pupil 
becomes  apparent  to  the  teacher  in  the  regular  daily 
■work,  without  any  test  by  special  examination.  That 
the  formal,  fearful,  periodical  examination  to  determine 
fitness  for  promotion  should  be  abolished,  and  that  in  its 
stead  should  be  substituted  the  test  of  daily  work,  is  a 
foregone  conclusion.  Frequent  written  recitations,  along 
with  oral  work,  should  constitute  a  continuous  examina- 
tion. Nothing  is  a  better  test  than  a  regular  recitation ;  un- 
less value  is  attached  to  a  long-impending  crisis  to  secure 
desperate  application,  and  heroic  effort  in  the  last  onset. 

The  school  is  not  completely  organized  and  ready  for 
movement  without  a  systematic  program  of  exercises. 
This  cannot  be  made  out  till  the  preceding  steps  have 
been  taken;  and  it  cannot  be  delayed  longer,  for  it  is 
the  last  step  which  conditions  active  school  work. 

9 


130  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

The  Program.  —  Tlie  severest  strain  put  upon  the 
teacher  is  that  of  keeping  himself  in  constant  unity 
with  all  the  classes  composing  the  school.  To  this  end 
there  must  be  a  systematic  time  gchedule  for  the  move- 
ment of  the  whole;  without  which  there  will  be  delays, 
collisions,  and  wrecks.  The  teacher  must  know  in 
advance  just  wliat  movements  and  connections  are  to 
be  made  during  each  session. 

This,  more  than  anything  else,  brings  that  confidence 
and  ecjuipoise  in  meeting  new  situations  and  changes  of 
movement  which  enthrones  the  teacher  as  master  of  the 
situation.  Each  class  and  each  pupil  must  be  so  well 
provided  for  beforehand  that  all  may  be  kept  constantly 
emjiloyed;  and  without  any  confusion  or  seeming  effort 
on  the  part  of  the  teacher.  It  is  dangerous  to  trust  to 
the  spur  of  the  moment;  for  the  moment  may  come  with- 
out a  spur.  To  provide  fully  for  new  situations,  many 
things  must  be  anticipated  which  do  not  have  to  be  met. 
Too  many  provisions  can  do  no  harm;  too  few  may  be 
fatal. 

Especially  is  all  this  true  on  the  first  day  of  school, 
when  a  special  program  is  required.  This  day  is  not 
more  trying  simply  because  the  exercises  are  irregular, 
but  because  the  teacher  is  new,  and  on  trial  before  the 
public  sentiment  of  the  school.  The  teacher  who  can 
hold  the  fort  on  this  day  has  achieved  a  victory  which 
promises  success  throughout.  This  victory  comes  by 
the  teacher  quietly  keeping  the  whole  school  moving 
in  unity,  while  organizing  parts  for  permanent  work;  and 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING  THE   LAW  131 

this  can  be  secnrfd  only  bj-  fixing  precisely  in  niiiul  tlie 
successive  and  simultaneous  steps  of  all  the  parts  during 
the  session  of  organization.  It  is  not  sufficient  merely  to 
write  out  the  program;  the  first  day's  work  must  have 
been  lived  tlirou,i,di  in  idea  so  fretjuently  tliat  the  teacher 
moves  through  the  work  with  the  custom  and  ease  of  life. 
It  is  said  that  a  criminal  wlio  is  to  be  executed  walks 
up  the  scafTold  so  constantly  in  idea  while  in  his  cell 
that,  wluMi  he  comes  to  walk  in  reality  before  the  awe- 
stricken  spectators,  his  tread  is  firm  and  steady.  Thus 
men  prepare  for  trying  situations,  and  the  first  day  of 
school  is  one  of  them.  If  the  teacher  has  not  lived  the  first 
day  in  idea  more  than  what  is  required  to  write  out  its 
program,  expecting  to  turn  to  the  desk  to  see  what  is 
next  to  be  done,  he  cannot  move  with  unruffled  confidence 
and  steady  power.  Hence  the  first  day  of  school,  in  all 
the  details  which  bring  the  whole  into  constant  unity, 
must  become  a  part  of  the  life  of  the  teacher  by  antici- 
pation, prolonged  thought,  and  meditation.  For  instance, 
the  teacher  must  have  decided,  and  must  have  gone  through 
the  performance  in  idea  many  times,  just  when  and  liow 
he  is  to  secure  the  names  of  the  pupils;  whetlier  to  jiass 
around,  as  of  old,  and  write  down  each  name  as  the  jnijtil 
gives  it  when  called  upon.  Or,  Avould  such  a  jjrocess, 
engaging  but  one  pupil  at  a  time,  jienuit  dissolution  of 
the  school;  and  be  fatal  to  that  business  dispatch  wliicdi 
begets  confidence  in  pupils  and  sense  of  power  in  the 
teacher.  If  the  teaclier  expects  to  develop  a  lesson,  and 
assign  work  to  a  class,  he  nmst  be  very  sure  that  he  has 


132  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

some  good  employiuent  for  every  member  of  every  othet 
class.  Such  precautions  neglected,  embarrassment  is  sure 
to  follow ;  and  the  teacher  becomes  a  Zekle  in  "  The 
Courtin',"  who 

"...  stood  a  spell  on  cue  foot  fust, 
Then  stood  a  spell  on  t'  otlier, 
An'  on  which  one  he  felt  the  wust, 
He  could  n't  ha'  told  ye  uuther." 

With  such  lack  of  poise  and  precision  of  movement, 
the  pupils  will  feel  by  the  close  of  the  first  day  that 
the  school  is  in  weak  hands;  and  so  would  the  critical 
observer,  for  this  is  the  real  keynote  of  the  teacher's 
managing  ability. 

But,  after  the  school  is  well  started,  the  systematic 
movement  by  regular  program  is  essential  to  order  and  dis- 
patch of  work;  unity  of  the  whole  being  the  constant  and 
absolute  requirement.  The  problem  is  to  keep  every  pupil 
of  every  class  at  work  all  the  time,  wasting  no  time  and 
energy,  whatever  the  teacher  may  need  to  turn  to.  This 
is  more  than  the  problem  of  class  unity;  it  is  that  of  the 
unity  of  all  the  classes  in  the  school  movement  as  a 
whole.  To  this  end  the  teacher  must  move  systematically 
by  a  daily  program;  not  necessarily  by  the  same,  perhaps 
necessarily  not;  but  the  exact  written  program  must  be 
the  basis,  from  which  variation  may  be  made  when  occa- 
sion requires.  Hence,  however  varying  the  life  and 
movement  of  the  school  may  be,  the  teacher  must  fix 
a  scheme  of  class  movements. 

In  this  he  must  be  especially  careful  to  provide  for  the 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.     133 

study  period,  the  class  reciting  being  sure  of  engagement. 
Until  recently  the  teaclier  gave  little  attention  to  this 
point;  tliinking  that  teaching  is  hearing  the  recitation, 
he  left  pupils  to  shift  for  themselves  while  out  of  it.  But 
now  we  understand  that  the  teacher  shows  at  least  as 
much  skill,  and  serves  the  pupil  as  efficiently,  in  provid- 
ing employment  as  in  hearing  the  lesson.  So  that  what 
the  pupils  are  to  accomplish  during  study  time  must  be 
as  definitely  put  into  the  program  as  the  topic  of  recita- 
tion. Tlie  written  program,  however,  can  show  the 
employment  only  in  general;  the  program  for  each  day, 
as  well  as  for  the  first  day,  must  be  made  out  daily. 
Nothing  can  so  much  insure  success  for  any  day's  work, 
as  time  spent  on  the  evening  or  morning  before  each  day, 
in  setting  up  for  guidance  and  inspiration  the  ideal  per- 
formance for  the  day.  Thus  only  can  be  insured  precision 
of  action,  and  certainty  and  force  in  execution. 

Pupils  in  Active  Unity  vlth  Teacher. 

Whether  or  not  there  be  one  or  more  classes  in  cliarge 
of  a  single  teacher,  the  work  moves  by  alternate  periods 
of  study  and  recitation;  and  the  teacher  must  strive  as 
carefully  to  secure  unity  with  pupils  in  the  preparation 
of  work  as  with  those  reciting. 

Unity  in  Class  Studying.  —  The  ideal  to  be  secured 
in  the  class,  or  classes,  studying  is  the  undivided  and 
the  greatest  possible  stress  of  attention  during  the  study 
period  on  the  thought  assigned  to  be  worked  out.     This 


134  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

is  unity,  not  primarily  of  pupils  among  themselves,  but 
with  the  teacher;  although  the  teacher  may  at  the  time 
be  studying,  or  conducting  a  recitation. 

1.  The  first  matter  to  receive  attention  is  the  condition 
of  pupils  before  they  are  set  to  work.  These  conditions 
have  already  been  enumerated,  and  are  supposed  to  be 
supplied  iu  general;  but  they  must  be  continually  re- 
adjusted at  every  breathing  space  in  the  work;  especially 
at  the  beginning  of  tlie  study  and  the  recitation  periods. 
All  immediate  physical  wants  of  the  pupils  must  be 
relieved,  by  attention  to  the  condition  of  the  room,  and  by 
recreation  through  rest  and  gymnastic  exercise.  A  song 
before  beginning  study  is  a  most  potent  means  of  reviving 
the  spirits  and  toning  the  mind  for  the  study  hour.  The 
teacher  cannot  afford  to  neglect  any  means  which  brings 
comfort  and  vigor  and  unity  of  mood  to  pupils  before 
turning  them  to  the  preparation  of  the  next  lesson.  The 
brief,  spirited  exercise  and  song  more  than  compensate 
for  the  time  consumed.  The  teacher  who  aspires  to 
skillful  management  must  not  tire  of  little  things,  but 
must  be  alert  to  every  detail  of  conditions  which  focuses 
energy  on  the  work  in  hand. 

2.  The  condition  and  attitude  of  pupils  now  favoring 
work,  the  assignment  of  the  lesson  is  in  order.  Since 
teacher  and  pupils  are  to  be  one  in  the  preparation  of 
the  lesson,  the  teacher,  before  it  is  possible  to  assign  the 
lesson  effectively,  must  have  traced  out  all  the  thought 
relations  in  the  subject  assigned,  which  he  wishes  the 
pupil  to  trace  out.     If  the  teacher  assigns  the  lesson  by 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.  135 

pages,  without  being  conscious  of  tlie  thought  effort  re- 
quired in  mastering  what  is  assigned,  there  can  be  no 
unity.  Without  such  preparation  on  the  part  of  tlie 
teacher,  it  wouhl  be  a  mere  accident  if  the  lesson  were 
assigned  so  as  to  secure  efficient  effort  on- the  part  of  tlie 
pupil.  ■* 

Let  it  be  noted  again  that  the  unit}^  desired  is  pri- 
marily, not  that  among  pupils,  but  that  between  pupils 
and  teacher.  If  the  pupils  focus  their  attention  on  the 
thought  which  the  teacher  has  planned  for  tliem,  unity 
among  themselves  will  be  incidentally  secured.  The 
unity  essential  may  be  secured  by  pupils  studying  at 
different  times  and  places,  as  is  done  with  college 
students.  The  only  reason  for  requiring  tlie  pupils  of 
common-school  grades  to  stiuly  by  program,  at  a  given 
time  and  place,  is  that  they  have  not  the  power  to  impose 
their  own  limit  of  time  and  place.  This  is  the  principle 
involved  in  the  discussion  of  whether  high  school  students 
should  study  at  home.  This  question  does  not  arise 
with  the  primary  grade,  nor  with  the  seniors  in  a  college; 
because  the  first  without  question  cannot  limit  themselves 
to  their  task,  wliilc  the  seeond  can  do  so.  The  primary 
pupil  is  to  be  trained  into  the  power  of  self-limitation 
by  imposing  limits  upon  him.  Since  we  scarcely  know 
what  to  do  with  high  school  pupils  in  this  respect,  they 
must  be  in  the  transitional  phase.  The  decision  turns  on 
whether  they  are  so  disciplined  tliat  tliey  can  self-impose 
their  own  task. 

But  the    unity   to   be    secured    in    the   class   studying 


136  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

whether  by  strict  requirement  of  time  and  place,  by 
program  in  the  school-room,  or  by  independent  self- 
direction  as  to  time  and  place,  is  the  unity  with  the 
teacher  in  the  thought  to  be  Avorked  out  in  the  lesson. 
This  brings  our  attention  to  one  of  the  essential  condi- 
tions of  unity  in  the  class  studying,  which  is,  that  the 
lesson  must  first  have  been  fully  experienced  by  the 
teacher  before  assigning  it  for  study  by  the  class. 

Teachers  have  learned  fairly  well  that  the  preparation 
of  a  lesson  is  necessary  in  the  recitation ;  but  there  is  yet 
great  need  of  conviction  that  careful  preparation  of  a 
lesson  is  also  essential  to  its  proper  assignment.  This 
error  arises,  as  do  most  others,  from  a  false  conception  of 
the  process  of  teaching.  When  teaching  is  conceived  as  a 
mechanical  process  of  imparting  results  measurable  by 
some  special  standard,  as  length  of  paragraph  or  page, 
then  the  lesson  can  be  assigned  by  length  and  breadth 
of  printed  matter,  and  without  any  previous  prepara- 
tion other  than  eye  measurement.  But  to  measure  the 
thought  to  be  compassed  by  the  pupil,  requires  a  detailed 
preparation  of  the  lesson  as  a  condition  of  intelligent 
assignment. 

3.  The  lesson  should  be  so  clearly  and  definitely 
assigned  that  the  pupil  can  neither  mistake  nor  escape 
what  is  to  be  done.  It  is  well  to  have  several  pupils  state 
just  what  is  to  be  worked  out  during  the  study  time;  or, 
a  better  form,  to  require  each  of  several  to  state  just  what 
he  expects  to  Avork  out  during  the  time.  Often  a  written 
assignment  of  the  lesson  on  the  board  will  hold  the  pupils 


thp:  ohoaxism  exkcitixo  tiik  law.         1:^,7 

to  more  definite  study,  and  the  teacher  to  more  definite 
assignment.  Tliis  is  a  vital  point  in  securing  order;  and 
the  teacher  must  not  feel  that  time  is  wasted  in  causing 
the  pupils  to  put  clearly  and  fully  before  themselves  a 
specific  toj)ic,  and  a  problem  concerning  it,  wliich  they 
are  to  work  out. 

This  guards  the  pupil  against  supposing  tliat  the  prep- 
aration of  his  lesson  consists  in  mastering  the  form  of  what 
is  said;  or  tliat  it  is  limited  to  the  outline  of  thought  as  tlie 
text  must  necessarily  put  it.  He  will  thus  be  inthienced 
to  the  use  of  reference  books  and  library,  and  have  his 
views  enlarged  and  liberalized  concerning  the  topic  under 
discussion.  The  study  period,  as  well  as  tlie  recitation, 
is  the  teaclicr's  opportunity  to  train  |iu}iils  to  jiniper 
habits  of  tliought  and  investigation ;  and  the  teacher  must 
recognize  and  ini]uove  the  opportunity  as  much  in  the  one 
case  as  in  the  other. 

4.  After  each  pupil  has  decided  just  what  he  is  going 
to  do,  he  must  note  whether  he  has  all  things  needed  for 
the  work,  and  whether  anything  about  him  is  not  needed. 
All  unnecessary  things  must  be  removed,  and  the  pupil 
supplied  with  all  that  lie  may  chance  to  need  in  the 
preparation  of  his  lesson.  If  he  is  cold  or  thirsty,  now 
is  the  time  to  attend  to  his  wants.  He  must  know  that 
after  the  class  has  begun  the  lesson,  he  cannot  get  a 
pencil,  fix  the  fire,  or  borrow  a  knife;  tliat  he  must  speak 
before  the  signal  for  work,  or  ever  after  hold  his  peace. 

6.  When  each  mind  is  made  clear  as  to  the  work  to 
be  done,  and  all  the  wants  have  been  supplied,  some  quiet 


138  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

signal,  as  a  nod,  — all  the  pupils  attentive  to  the  teacher, 
—  should  be  given  for  work  to  begin.  The  teacher  should 
now  pause  before  the  class  till  he  feels  that  all  are  in  firm 
tension  with  the  lesson.  It  is  waste  of  time  to  be  in 
nervous  haste  to  pass  to  the  recitation.  A  moment's 
pause  and  a  quiet  withdrawal  strongly  favor  continued 
attention  during  the  absence  of  the  teacher. 

6.  While  the  teacher  is  conducting  a  recitation,  no  pupil 
in  the  class  not  reciting  should  be  permitted  to  change  work, 
speak  to  any  one,  get  anything  which  should  have  been  be- 
fore supplied,  fix  the  fire,  ask  the  teacher  about  his  lesson, 
etc.  If  the  teacher  has  carefully  provided  for  all  the  pupil's 
wants  there  can  be  no  necessity  for  giving  him  attention 
now.  To  stop  the  recitation  to  answer  his  question  is  to 
give  the  time  of  the  twenty  in  the  class  to  the  one.  He  has 
no  right  to  break  the  unity  between  the  teacher  and  the 
class.  If  he  finds  now  that  he  needs  a  pencil,  to  supply 
him  would  cultivate  a  want  of  foresight;  and  by  to-morrow 
he  will  want  both  pencil  and  book.  He  cannot  get  the 
pencil  during  the  study  time  without  breaking  up  the 
whole  school,  for  a  moment,  at  least.  If  he  should  pass 
to  get  a  drink,  or  fix  the  fire,  all  work  must  stop  for  his 
convenience.  His  study  time  will,  perhaps,  continue  not 
over  thirty  minutes;  and  if  the  teacher  has  attended  to  all 
Avants,  as  he  should  have  done,  the  pupil  will  not  die  for  any- 
thing in  so  short  a  time,  however  warmly  he  may  plead  his 
cause.  I  do  not  mean  that  there  are  no  circumstances 
under  which  the  pupil  may  move  and  accommodate  him- 
self to  his  work.      If   the  stove   becomes  too  warm,    oi 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAAV.  139 

if  he  needs  to  consult  reference  books,  he  sliouhl  move  from 
his  desk  without  asking  the  teacher.  It  is  a  great  gain 
in  discipline  and  self-control  for  the  pupil  to  take  himself 
in  charge  so  far  as  possible.  We  must  not  have  foolish 
notions  about  obedience,  and  give  the  pupil  to  understand 
that  he  must  not  breathe  without  permission  from  liead- 
quarters.  Freedom  of  the  pupil  under  liis  own  judgment 
as  to  what  is  proper  is  the  only  way  to  secure  the  unity 
desired,  and  to  cultivate  the  power  of  self-control. 

It  is  not  quite  so  clear  that  the  pu[)il  sliould  not  change 
his  work  during  the  study  time  of  a  given  lesson.  Sup- 
pose a  strong  pupil  gets  his  history  lesson  in  half  the 
time  assigned,  should  he  not  turn  to  some  other  les- 
son? This  is  better  than  for  him  to  sit  idle,  or  be  stir- 
ring up  fun.  The  fallacy  is  in  the  supposition.  He  has 
not  his  lesson,  if  it  be  well  assigned.  If  so  many  para- 
graphs are  given  to  learn,  he  may  commit  them,  and,  hav- 
ing a  watch  with  stop  attaclnuont,  may  note  the  second 
and  fraction  of  a  second  in  which  he  made  the  course. 
r>ut  I  have  in  mind  a  real  teacher,  who  gives  the  class  a 
problem  to  work  out;  and  a  problem  is  elastic.  Suppose 
he  is  to  work  out  the  battle  of  B.unker  Hill;  to  create  a 
full  and  vivid  picture;  to  note  its  purpose  and  results, 
immediate  and  remote;  to  mark  its  parts,  and  their  rela- 
tions to  each  otlier;  or  something  of  this  sort.  Where 
is  the  end  to  this  lesson?  Tliis  ])attle  may  be  treated 
in  two  paragraphs,  which  he  might  commit  in  half  the 
allotted  time.  In  suoh  a  case,  he  ought  to  change  his 
work;  and  the  sooner  the  better.     This  battle  has  enough 


140  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

to  engage  all  the  power  of  the  historian  for  thirty  minutes 
or  thirty  days.  Why  not  put  it  to  the  class  so  that  the 
strongest  might  exhaust  his  time  and  strength,  and  yet 
the  weakest  have  something  he  can  profitably  do? 

It  is  easy  for  a  pupil  to  persuade  himself  tliat  he  has 
his  lesson,  and  dangerous  to  indulge  him  in  tliat  direction. 
What  he  needs,  more  than  history,  is  power  to  fasten  his 
thought  on  a  given  problem.  The  strict  requirements  of 
the  study  period  should  confer  this  power.  One  of  the 
best  disciplinary  opportunities  in  the  school  is  just  this 
furnished  by  the  study  time,  in  which  the  teacher  can 
help  the  pupil  to  hold  himself  continuously  to  one  object 
of  thought.  His  untrained  mind  moves  to  its  work  con- 
fusedly,  and  leaps  from  one  thing  to  another  without 
method  and  continuity.  The  strict  requirement  of  unity 
is  essential,  not  only  in  learning  the  assigned  lesson,  but 
to  the  more  valuable  end  of  continued  and  concentrated 
attention  on  whatever  he  undertakes  to  master.  To  keep 
interesting  story  books  on  the  teacher's  desk,  that  a  pupil 
may  interest  and  busy  himself  after  he  thinks  he  has  done 
his  lesson,  while  better  than  flogging  for  mischief,  does 
not  favor  order  and  good  discipline.  This  indulges  his 
caprice,  and  encourages  him  to  persuade  himself  that  he 
knows  what  he  does  not  know,  and  defeats  discipline  in 
power  of  concentration  and  continued  effort;  certainly  a 
quality  as  much  to  be  desired  as  the  knowledge  to  be 
gained  in  the  study  period. 

No;  the  more  one  thinks  of  it,  so  far  as  the  lower  grades 
of  school  are  concerned,  the  more  rigid  does  the  law  appear 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  141 

that  the  pupil  must  not  change  his  subject  of  study 
during  the  program lued  time  for  class-study.  When  such 
a  recjuirement  becomes  useless  to  hi  in,  he  no  longer  needs 
to  study  under  the  immediate  direction  of  the  teacher. 
Let  it  be  concluded,  therefore,  that,  unless  the  house  is 
on  fire,  pupils  in  the  class  studying  must  stick,  without 
wavering,  to  the  question  set  for  that  time. 

Unity  in  Class  Reciting.  —  The  ideal  to  be  secured  in 
the  class  reciting  is,  that  all  pupils  fuse  with  the  teacher 
in  an  unbroken  effort  to  grasp  the  problem  under  con- 
sideration. Again,  let  us  insist  that  the  unity  of  one 
pupil  with  another  —  a  mere  external  unity  —  is  not  the 
unity  desired.  Such  a  unity  will  be  secured  as  a  result 
of  the  essential  unity  of  pupils  with  teacher.  The  skill 
of  the  teacher  in  the  recitation  will  be  summed  up  in 
the  degree  of  undivided  effort  secured.  The  greater  the 
amount  and  intensity  of  mental  activity  aroused  in  con- 
junction with  the  thought  of  the  teacher,  tlie  higher 
should  be  our  estimate  of  the  teaching  skill. 

1.  The  first  point  to  receive  attention  here  is  the  same 
as  that  already'  discussed  for  securing  attention  in  the 
Jilass  studying,  — namely,  the  comfortable,  buoyant,  and 
spirited  condition  of  pupils;  and  since,  if  more  than  one 
class,  the  recitation  and  the  study  begin  practically 
together,  the  conditions  are  secured  at  the  same  time. 

2.  The  other  general  condition  essential  to  unity  is 
that  of  thorough  preparation  on  the  part  of  both  teacher 
and  pupil.  On  the  part  of  the  pupil,  this  has  been 
provided  for  in  the  study  hour.     No  source  of  failure  is  so 


142  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

fruitful  as  the  lack  of  preparation  of  the  lesson  by  the 
teacher.  The  teacher  must  have  so  mastered  the  lesson 
tliat  he  feels  his  freedom  in  the  thought  to  be  presented. 
Vague  and  partial  knowledge  cannot  guide  and  strengthen. 
Tlie  thought  of  the  lesson  must  have  been  so  mastered 
that  the  teacher  will  feel  perfectly  at  home  in  whatever 
new  and  unexpected  turn  the  discussion  may  take;  and 
such  turn  it  is  sure  to  take. 

The  lesson  must  be  thoroughly  prepared,  not  only  to 
enable  the  teacher  to  guide  with  steady  hand  the  various 
activities  of  the  pupils  to  the  end  sought,  but  also  to 
draw  all  to  himself  by  the  law  of  unconscious  sympathy. 
A  teacher  has  no  right  to  hear  a  lesson  until  he  has 
become  inspired  through  a  deep  study  of  it;  and  then, 
approaching  the  class  filled  and  thrilled  with  his  message, 
the  pupils  unconsciously  bend  forward,  and  are  fused  into 
one  by  the  heat  of  his  thought.  Skill  in  teaching  can 
never  be  cold  and  mechanical.  Whatever  the  thought  to 
be  presented,  it  must  be  so  wrought  into  the  teacher's 
being,  that  it  will  glow  with  warmth  of  life.  And  note 
that  this  is  not  merely  an  interest  in  the  matter  of  the 
lesson,  but  an  interest  in  the  result  to  be  produced  in  the 
pupil  by  means  of  the  lesson.  The  preparation  of  the 
lesson  is  the  study  of  the  matter  in  relation  to  the  life 
of  the  pupil.  The  teacher's  problem  is,  "What  change  can 
I  make  in  the  pupil's  life  by  the  means  now  at  my  com- 
mand?" This  problem  thoroughly  entered  into,  and  the 
teacher  becomes  burdened  with  a  message  to  his  pupils. 
Seeing  clearly  his  means,   and  feeling  deeply  his  oppor- 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.     143 

tunity,  he  ap^troaches  his  chass  with  tliat  flush  and  glow 
of  interest  wliich  kiniUes  the  thought  and  warms  the  heart 
of  those  he  instructs.  It  is  all  a  question  of  downright 
earnestness  and  sincerit}^  of  purjiose;  a  burning  desire  to 
quicken  the  soul  of  the  child  into  the  highest  good  of 
life. 

3.  The  next  step  is  to  secure  the  outer  form  of  unity, 
and    the    attitude    of    attention.       The    desks    should    be 
cleared  of  everything  not  needed  in  the  recitation.     The 
class  sliould  be  seated  in  a  compact  form;    and  all  lines 
straight  from  front  to  back,  and  from  right  to  left.     There 
should  be  no  vacant  place  within  the  compass  of  the  class. 
The  class  should  look  well  as  a  body.     The  teacher  cannot 
think  straight  in  the   presence  of  a  crooked  and  ragged 
form.     The  question   often  arises:   "Ought  classes  to  re- 
cite in  their  study  forms,  or  be  called  to  recitation  seats?" 
This  cannot  be  answered  till  all  the  conditions  are  given. 
The  place  should  be  chosen  wliieh  will  best  secure  unity 
under  the  conditions.     The  question  of  removing  the  class 
to  prevent  disturbance  of  others  is  a  determining  factor. 
The  ideal  is  a   neatly  and   compactly   formed   class,    re- 
moved, if  necessary,  so  as  not  to  disturb,  or  be  disturbed 
by,  others.     Xow,  with  the  eyes  of  the  pupils  fixed  on  the 
teacher,    in   obedience   to   some   noiseless  signal,    all   are 
ready  for  the  thought  movement  of  the  lesson. 

4.  The  thought  of  the  class  will  move  forward  by 
means  of  directions,  questions,  and  explanations  or 
lectures. 

Directions.  —  In  giving  directions,   the  golden    rule   is 


144  yClIooL    MANAGEMENT. 

to  give  the  direction  so  tliat  all  pupils  will  do  the  same 
thing  at  tlie  same  time.  Tliere  may  be  exceptions  —  but 
they  are  rare  —  permitting  one  part  of  the  class  to  do  one 
thing,  while  others  are  diiferently  engaged.  Nothing,  for 
example,  could  be  more  inartistic  and  less  effective  than 
to  announce  in  turn  different  sentences  for  tlie  members 
of  the  class  to  pass  to  the  board  and  diagram.  Each  one 
is  concerned  with  his  own  little  affair,  and  as  soon  as  a 
pupil  has  written  his  sentence  he  may  turn  his  thoughts 
to  mischief,  or  prop  himself  up  against  the  wall,  waiting 
patiently  for  his  slow  turn.  Without  passing  to  the 
board,  wasting  time  and  chalk,  all  minds  might  be  riveted 
on  the  same  .thought  concerning  the  sentence,  allowing 
no  time  for  dozing  or  dissipation,  Tlius  each  j)upil  is 
required  to  put  forth  his  most  intense  activity  for  the 
entire  time,  avoiding  the  half-asleep  kind  of  thinking  so 
fatal  to  intellectual  life.  This,  however,  according  to 
some  theories,  may  be  all  wrong,  as  it  interferes  with  the 
pupil's  freedom  and  individuality. 

Here  is  a  picture  taken  from  life:  School-room  of  two 
grades  (seventh  and  eighth),  of  about  twenty  pupils  each. 
Good  teacher,  as  the  world  goes;  lesson  in  denominate 
numbers  by  the  seventh  grade.  Teacher  directs  one  boy 
to  pass  to  the  board  and  solve  the  first  problem;  another, 
the  second;  and  so  on  till  the  ten  problems  are  used. 
Then,  commencing  again  with  the  first  problem,  re-assigns 
the  ten  problems  severally  to  the  next  ten  pupils.  A  few 
pupils  still  remain  without  work,  and  these  are  given 
selected  problems  to  work  at  desks,  the  board  all  being 


THE   OKGAXISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW.  145 

occupied.  The  teacher  now  steps  Lack  to  talk  to  tlie 
visitor  while  waiting  developments.  Things  always 
develop  rapidly  under  such  circumstances;  and  soon  the 
teacher  is  needed  by  a  girl  working  at  her  desk,  where 
teacher  and  pupil  discuss  the  problem.  Note  here  that  it 
is  all  right  for  teacher  and  pupil  to  talk  during  recitation, 
because  the  teacher  makes  the  rules :  two  pupils  must  not 
talk;  except  to  help  each  other,  as  they  say.  And  this 
tliey  soon  do,  for  the  bright  girl  points  the  way  to  tlie 
dull  boy.  The  lirst  boy  has  done  his  sum;  and,  rather  tlian 
waste  time,  punches  the  lire,  which  is  already  too  hot. 
Another  bright  lad  cultivates  the  fantasy  and  freehand 
drawing;  while  some  laggards  toil  on,  with  and  without 
help,  hopeless,  and  despairing  of  victory  before  time  is 
called.  The  first  boy  explains  to  those  who  have  done  their 
work,  while  otliers  toil  on.  Fill  out  the  picture  at  your 
leisure.  In  all  it  was  a  splendid  display  of  self-activity, 
free  thought,  and  free  speech. 

What  would  that  teacher  have  gained  if  he  had  required 
all  the  problems  to  be  put  in  neat  form  of  process  on 
slates  or  note  books;  so  that  at  the  recitation  he  might 
have  done  something  like  this:  Called  on  the  class  as  a 
whole  for  the  first  step  in  the  problem,  permitting  one  to 
speak  for  the  class;  then  have  said,  "Take  tlie  step," 
calling  on  one  to  speak  for  tlie  class  again.  And  thus 
moving  rapidly  till  all  problems  were  solved.  With  pujiils 
neat,  prim,  and  orderly  in  their  desks,  each  i)upil  niiglit 
have  been  compelled  to  think  each  problem  through,  and 
«o  have  multiplied  immeasurably  the  amount  and  intensit3- 

10 


146  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

of  thought  for  the  given  time.  The  recitation  is  not  the 
time  to  wait  for  a  pupil  to  solve  a  problem.  All  must  be 
ready  to  pull  together,  and  the  teacher  must  see  to  it  that 
the  highest  combined  energy  of  thought  is  secured. 

Such  recitations  as  the  above  do  not  only  require  no 
effort  in  recitation,  but  require  no  effort  in  preparation. 
Each  pupil,  knowing  that  he  has  but  one  problem  to  solve, 
is  apt  to  take  his  chances  without  definite  preparation. 
He  will  read  the  first  problem,  and  decide  that  he  can 
solve  it  on  the  spur  of  the  moment.  If  he  finds  one  that 
is  peculiarly  difficult,  he  knows  that  twenty  chances  to 
one  it  will  come  to  some  one  else.  If  he  is  a  farmer's 
boy,  and  trained  to  bind  wheat  all  day  under  a  scorching 
sun,  he  may  know  no  better  than  to  work  away  with  all 
his  might;  but  sucli  industry  does  not  come  from  the 
teaching. 

Questions. — This  is  a  unique  method  of  instruction, 
based  on  the  assumption  that  knowledge  is  born  in  the 
mind,  —  is  of  the  mind,  and  not  something  to  be  put  into  it 
from  the  outside.  Teaching  by  giving  directions  partakes 
somewhat  of  the  same  nature,  but  not  so  exclusively. 
The  question  is  a  clear  recognition  of  the  fact  that  knowl- 
edge is  a  process  in  the  mind  of  the  learner,  — a  favorite 
doctrine  of  Socrates,  on  which  was  based  the  Socratic 
question.  The  chief  merit  in  his  method  of  instruction 
was  not  so  much  in  the  fact  that  he  used  an  ingenious 
form  of  questioning,  as  in  the  due  recognition  of  self- 
activity  in  the  process  of  learning.  With  him  instruc- 
tion could  not  deliver  ideas  by  conveyance  from   one  to 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING   THE  LAW.  147 

another,  but  must  stiuiulato  self-activity  into  processes  of 
knowledge.  The  new  education  dates  back  at  least  to 
Socrates. 

In  thus  stimulating  self-activit}'  the  questioning  of  Soc- 
rates took  a  surprising  turn.  Usually  questions  are  asked 
to  obtain  information.  The  one  addressed  is  assumed  to 
know  tlie  answer,  while  the  questioner  is  supposed  to  be 
ignorant  of  it.  Wlien  you  ask  a  man  the  way  to  town, 
he  is  supposed  to  know,  but  you  are  not.  On  any  other 
assumption  he  would  ordinarily  feel  that  your  question 
is  impertinent.  The  vexing  thing  about  the  questioning 
of  Socrates  was  the  fact  that  he  asked  questions  of  people 
not  supposed  to  know  the  answer;  and  not  for  the  purpose 
of  gaining  information,  as  he  ironically  pretended  to  do. 
People  were  not  used  to  such  impertinence,  and  sometimes 
talked  angrily  to  Socrates,  and  refused  to  answer  his  iron- 
ical questions;  which,  while  bringing  Socrates  no  infor- 
mation, made  other  ])eople  so  unpleasantly  conscious  of 
ignorance.  After  all  that  has  been  said  about  the  Socratic 
question,  I  suppose  the  unique  thing  about  it  was  the 
reversal  of  the  ordinary  movement  of  thought  in  a  ques- 
tion. The  Socratic  question  is  simjjly  the  teaching 
question.  His  exceptional  skill  in  the  use  of  it  could  not 
have  given  rise  to  a  distinct  species  of  questioning.  He 
may  have  made  excessive  use  of  pretence  to  be  asking 
questions  in  the  customary  way;  hence  the  ironical 
feature;  but  the  chief  point  is  the  use  of  tlie  question  in 
teaching  as  different  from  that  in  gaining  information. 

The  foregoing  suggests  the  true  nature  and  princijde  of 


148  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

questioning.  The  question  causes  a  tension  between  the 
mind  and  an  object,  and  challenges  the  mind  to  cancel 
the  tension.  The  mind,  quiescent,  is  made  conscious  of 
ignorance ;  then  the  tension  arises,  which  tends  to  release 
itself  in  knowledge.  The  teaching  question  makes  the 
mind  conscious  of  limitation,  but  requires  the  removal  of 
limitation  in  the  acquisition  of  knowledge.  Thus  it  is 
clear  that  that  question  is  best  which  sets  up  the  strongest 
tension  between  the  mind  and  the  unknown  object.  The 
differences  in  the  art  of  questioning  are  finally  tested  at 
this  point;  and  if  the  teacher  will  recall  his  experience 
in  questioning,  he  will  discover  that  his  effort  and  his  dif- 
ficulty have  been  to  secure  the  required  stress  on  the  part 
of  the  pupil.  The  law,  therefore,  requires  that  the  ques- 
tion secure  the  highest  possible  tension  of  thought  on  the 
point  under  discussion ;  that  it  be  put  so  that  the  pupil 
must  think ;  not  dream,  guess,  or  answer  automatically. 

Turning  now  to  questioning  classes,  the  law  must  have 
an  additional  emphasis,  —  that  of  forcing  every  member  of 
the  class  to  think  the  answer. 

This  is  the  fundamental  truth  in  all  directions  as  to 
how,  and  how  not,  to  question.  For  instance,  it  is 
properly  said  that  the  question  should  be  asked  before 
designating  the  one  to  answer.  If  the  teacher  should  say, 
"  John,  you  may  stand  now  ;  I  wish  to  ask  you  a  question. 
Which  is  the  longest  river  in  the  world  ?"  the  other 
members  of  the  class  are  excused,  and  each  may  engage 
in  his  own  line  of  thought.  But  if  the  teacher  should 
say,  "  Which  is  the  longest  river  in  the  world  ?  "  and  then, 


Tin:   ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW  140 

after  a  short  pause,  and  without  any  indication  as  to 
whom  the  question  would  fall,  say,  "John,"  all  must 
have  thought  the  answer  in  expectation  of  giving  it.  No 
matter  if  only  one  has  answered,  all  have  recited.  It  is 
said  that  a  teacher  should  not  call  on  pupils  in  regular 
order.  This  follows  from  the  fact  that  a  i)upil  may 
anticipate  his  question,  and  withdraw  from  the  line  of 
thought  till  his  turn  comes.  A  teacher  should  not  indi- 
cate, by  naming,  by  gesture,  by  look,  or  by  regular  order 
of  procedure,  the  one  who  is  to  answer  until  all  are  think- 
ing the  answer. 

We  are  told  not  to  ask  questions  which  can  be  answered 
by  yes  or  no.  Such  questions  can  be  answered  without 
thinking;  and  pupils  say  yes  and  no  automatically,  while 
thinking  of  things  other  than  the  subject  under  considera- 
tion. Such  questions  are  easy  to  ask;  and,  since  in  one 
chance  out  of  two  the  pupil  hits  the  perfect  answer,  many 
fall  into  this  loose  form  of  questioning. 

Verbose  questioning  is  a  serious  and  common  error 
against  unity.  "Now,  Mary,  I  wish,  if  you  please,  you 
would  answer  me  this  question:  Who  is  the  author  of 
'  Snow  Bound  '?"  All  of  this,  except  the  question,  is  not 
only  useless,  but  dissipates  the  energy  of  the  class  by  not 
giving  them  something  to  do.  Still  better  to  put  it  in 
this  form:  "Author  of  'Snow  Bound'  ?"  This  is  quickly 
done,  and  perfectly  clear.  Many  such  can  be  dropped  out 
and  answered,  while  a  single  one,  like  the  first,  would 
drag  its  slow  length  along.  As  a  rule,  one-half  the  words 
used  by  the  teacher  may  be  omitted,  and  the  effect  multi- 


150  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

jilind.  We  like  to  hear  oursolves  talk,  and  keep  the  air 
ruUing  with  sound,  thinking  that  there  must  be  highly 
charged  thought  with  so  much  runabliug  noise.  A  pas- 
senger at  the  Terre  Haute  station  says  to  the  agent: 
"  Good-morning,  sir.  Can  you  wait  on  me  now  ?  Will 
you  please  give  me  a  ticket  to  Indianapolis  ? "  Why 
not  say,  "  A  ticket  to  Indianapolis  "  ?  Better  this  :  "  To 
Indianapolis."  Best  this:  "Indianapolis."  It  will  be 
perfectly  clear,  if  the  word  is  accompanied  with  a  five 
dollar  bill ;  and,  besides,  the  passenger  may  hope  to  take 
the  first  train.  So  in  teaching:  the  polite,  formal,  and 
verbose  deliverance  may  often  be  reduced  to  a  monosyl- 
lable, and  avoid  leaving  passengers  behind  the  train  of 
thought. 

Explanations  or  Lectures. — In  giving  pupils  directions, 
or  in  asking  them  questions,  they  are  supposed  to  be  able 
to  put  things  together,  and  to  reach  conclusions  them- 
selves; and  these  methods  put  the  subject-matter  before 
pupils  so  as  to  stimulate  them  to  make  such  original 
constructions.  There  may  arise  conditions  which  require 
the  teacher  to  give  aid  in  explanations,  and  sometimes, 
in  the  more  formal  lecture.  This  method  assumes  that 
pupils  have  already  arrived  at  an  active,  anxious  state  of 
mind  touching  the  subject  of  discussion.  If  pupils  are 
indifferent,  or  relaxed  in  mental  attitude,  talk  will  not 
reach  them  ;  they  themselves  must  be  put  to  work  on  the 
problem.  Students  know  well  how  easy  it  is  to  take  a 
course  by  lectures  in  university  work ;  and  even  the  best 
student  will  relax  his   effort  when  put-  in  the   reeeptiye 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW  151 

rather  than  in  the  constructive  attitude.  The  lecture 
method  is  an  excellent  one  for  the  professor ;  for  he  must 
thus  initiate,  construct,  and  investigate  systems  of  thought. 
The  value  of  this  to  himself  ouglit  to  convince  him  that  it 
would  be  best  to  direct  the  student  to  original  investiga- 
tions and  constructions,  and  require  the  student  to  deliver 
the  lecture  to  the  patient  and  long-suffering  professor, 
rather  than  cultivate  such  virtues  in  the  student. 

Yet  the  teacher  must  explain,  and  sometimes  lecture; 
but  tliis  must  be  done  warily,  because  the  pupil  so  easily 
relaxes  mental  energy  when  the  teacher  assumes  the 
responsibilit}'.  Such  method  is  needed  and  proper  only 
when  pu[)ils  are  brought  to  such  firm  tension  witli  their 
subject  that  no  risk  of  relaxation  is  assumed.  Only  then 
will  talk  from  the  teacher  reach  its  aim.  There  are 
classes  and  audiences  in  such  attitude  as  not  onl}'-  to 
justify,  but  to  require,  continued  discourse  from  the  in- 
structor. Such  method,  when  tlu'  conditions  permit, 
secures  rapidity  in  development  of  thought.  Develop- 
ment by  directions  and  questions  is  a  tedious  process ;  and 
when  the  teacher  is  sure  that  the  development  will  go  on 
in  the  pu[)irs  mind  by  merely  listening  to  discourse,  he 
should  use  the  more  expeditious  method.  So  that  the 
lecture  method,  like  any  other  method,  cannot  be  praised 
or  blamed  in  itself;  it  is  all  a  question  of  adaptation  to 
known  conditions  in  the  mind  of  th(>  learner.  Wliile  its 
use  is  most  efficient  when  the  conditions  justify,  it  can  be 
rarely  justified ;  and  as  rarely  in  the  universit}-  as  in  the 
kindergarten.     So  rare  indeed  is  its  proper  use,  tliat  the 


152  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

ideal  of  the  teacher  should  be  that  of  keeping  as  nearly 
silent  as  possible  during  the  recitation.  No  fault  of  the 
recitation  is  more  obstrusive  than  that  of  too  much  talk 
from  the  teacher.  The  beautiful  recitation  is  marked  by 
the  quietness  and  seeming  lack  of  effort  on  the  part  of 
the  teacher,  accompanied  by  mental  strain  and  stress  on 
the  part  of  pupils.  The  recitation  is  for  the  sake  of  the 
pupil's  effort  and  not  the  teacher's ;  and  whatever  display 
of  energy  there  may  be  must  come  from  them  and  not 
from  him.  Quite  often  the  brilliant  performance  of  the 
teacher  in  the  recitation  puts  under  suspicion  the  value  of 
his  work  to  the  class.  The  artistic  teacher  will  obscure 
himself  as  much  as  possible,  and  make  as  prominent  as 
possible  the  effort  and  products  of  his  pupils.  Anything 
else,  since  the  class  is  the  end  and  the  teacher  the  means, 
is  distortion. 

Obstacles  Id  forward  Movement.  —  A  chief  obstacle  in 
maintaining  the  movement  of  the  class  in  unity  is  that  of 
diverse  ability  in  its  membership,  and  the  necessity  of 
helping  the  weak  pupil.  The  temptation  in  snch  cases  is 
to  give  personal  help ;  and  the  question  often  arises  as  to  how 
far  the  giving  of  special  help  is  permissible  during  the  reci- 
tation period.  In  this  matter  the  principle  of  unity  is  the 
sufficient  guide.  We  have  seen  that  in  the  very  nature 
of  class  work  it  is  all  individual  help;  but  that  it  must 
always  be  the  help  of  all.  This  principle  of  helping  all 
in  every  act  of  instruction  must  not  be  violated;  but  its 
application  is  so  elastic  as  to  permit  much  aid  to  the  weak 
pupil  while  continuing  the  activity  of  the  strong. 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  153 

Suppose  a  pupil  fails  to  follow  the  development  of  an 
idea  in  class,  the  teacher  must  begin  at  the  first  and 
redevelop  with  the  whole  class.  This  process  may  be 
repeated  up  to  the  point  of  risk  in  losing  attention  of 
other  members  of  the  class  through  a  sense  of  familiarity 
and  useless  repetition.  It  is  always  probable  that  a  con- 
siderable repetition  of  the  process  is  good  for  all;  but  when 
it  passes  this  point,  the  weak  pupil  must  secure  the  ser- 
vices of  the  teacher  out  of  session  hours.  Instead  of  keep- 
ing the  pupil  in,  it  seems  much  nicer  to  the  pupil  to  keep 
the  teacher  in;  and  if  the  teacher  understands  his  relation 
to  the  pupil,  and  desires  a  quiet  and  a  happy  household, 
he  will  ingeniously  and  cheerfully  shift  requirement  and 
responsibility  of  keeping  in  after  school  to  the  side  of  the 
pupil.  A  cheerful  offering  of  service  after  school  hours, 
when  the  pupil  has  been  made  to  feel  the  need  of  that 
service,  releases  tlie  teacher  from  further  responsibility. 
At  any  rate,  if  the  pupil  does  not  feel  the  need  of  the 
assistance  and  thus  desire  it,  the  friction  caused  by  his 
forcible  detention  renders  useless  the  service  of  tlie  teacher 
after  school  hours. 

In  the  process  of  recitation,  the  teacher  must  avoid 
thrusting  anything  between  the  thought  on  the  point  uiuler 
discussion  and  the  minds  of  tlie  class.  A  prominent  form 
of  this  is  that  of  requiring  pupils  to  recite  in  words  of 
the  text,  as  if  the  text  were  a  collection  of  memory  gems. 
The  recitation  is  a  movement  of  thought  on  a  given  theme, 
and  whatever  requires  straining  to  conform  to  language, 
when  the  form  of  language  is  not  essential,  checks  the 


154  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

free  movement  of  tlioiiglit.  Tlie  memor'iter  recitation  may 
be  very  beautiful  in  outer  form,  but,  closely  inspected,  it 
reveals  distortion.  The  pride  of  tlie  teacher  in  the  prim 
and  so-called  perfect  recitation  leads  to  formal  and 
mechanical  work,  wliich  defeats  tlie  object  of  the  recita- 
tion. This  prevails  to  such  an  extent  that  it  is  well  to 
beware  of  the  pretty  and  perfect  recitation. 

When  a  history  class,  seated  ever  so  correctly,  with 
arms  folded,  say  off  in  order,  eacli  in  turn,  the  paragraphs 
of  the  lesson,  and  repeat  by  ingenious  distribution  till  all 
show  perfect  preparation,  it  is  not  beautiful,  because  not 
the  freedom  of  the  inner  life.  Yet  teachers  have  com- 
manded exceptional  salaries  for  skill  in  neat,  ingenious 
mechanism.  Two  kinds  of  recitation  in  geometry  are 
often  heard.  In  one  each  member  moves  through  the 
demonstration  without  a  halt,  and  triumphantly;  follow-- 
ing  the  figures  and  letters  precisely  as  given  in  the  text. 
In  the  other,  the  members  struggle,  stumble,  and  fail  in 
the  effort  at  original  demonstration;  but  in  this  case  there 
is  intense  and  free  demonstrative  activity,  while  in  the 
former  there  is  but  the  pretence  of  demonstration  ingen- 
iously obscured  by  the  perfect  form  of  it.  The  recitation 
is  beautiful  just  in  proportion  as  it  secures  energy  of 
thought,  however  struggling  and  halting  it  may  seem;  and 
the  beautiful  external  form  may  be  secured  at  the  expense 
of  this.  The  neat,  prim  form  of  recitation  is  to  be 
desired;  all  things  should  be  done  decently  and  in  order; 
but  the  beauty  of  form  should  be  discriminated  from  the 
beauty  of  life,  and  not  permitted  to  crush  out  the  life  it 
is  to  serve. 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING   THE  LAW.  155 

Another  very  effectiTe  method  of  shackling  the  move 
ment  of  thought,  is  tliat  of  constraining  pupils  to  think 
and  express  in  conformity  with  the  teacher's  thought  and 
expression.  This  is  a  most  subtle  form  of  the  cramming 
process,  and  practiced  mucli  by  those  wlio  condemn  that 
process.  They  would  not  for  the  world  force  pupils  to 
the  acceptance  of  ready-made  products  of  the  text;  l)iit 
they  manage  to  bring  pupils  around  exactly  to  their  own 
forms  and  conclusions. 

The  guessing,  or  developing,  lesson  is  a  very  popular 
mode  of  obstructing  the  free  movement  of  tliouglit.  We 
are  told  that  we  must  not  tell  the  pupil  anything  wliich 
he  can  find  out  for  liimself ;  and  straightway  we  infer  that 
he  can  find  out  everything,  and  that  it  must  be  developed 
out  of  him.  Often  Avhen  we  think  such  has  been  accom- 
plished, it  comes  either  from  a  sly  hint  from  the  teaclier, 
or  from  a  statement  of  a  member  of  the  class.  In  most 
cases  wlion  a  class  throw  up  hands,  and  the  teaclier 
exclaims,  "Behold  it  has  been  developed  1"  it  has  only 
been  surmised  and  guessed  at  by  many  wasteful  efforts. 
The  time  wasted  in  the  over-developing  process  is  alarm- 
ing. WlifMi  the  teaclier  knows  that  he  must  virtually  give 
the  point  to  the  class,  as  will  often  hapi)en,  he  sliould  do 
so  at  once;  and  not  stop  to  practice  developing,  and  to  play 
with  his  art.  Guessing  lessons  are  not  thinking  lessons; 
and  the  pupil  ought  never  to  be  put  in  the  attitude  of  guess- 
ing at  Avhat  is  in  the  teacher's  mind. 

Again,  to  sit  with  class-book  and  pencil,  noting  the 
exact  weight  of  the  thought  delivered,  ia  pwt.  and  gr.,  is 


156  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

fatal  to  the  fullest  and  freest  activity  on  the  part  of  the 
pupil;  and,  for  that  matter,  the  teacher  also.  Especially 
is  tliis  objectionable  when  the  teacher  threatens  the  pupil 
with  his  poor  marking.  "There  goes  another  zero  for 
you;  you  will  have  this  work  all  to  do  over  if  you  do  not 
begin  to  make  a  better  record  soon."  This  leads  me  to 
speak  more  broadly  of  the  law  of  sympathy  between 
teacher  and  pupil  as  the  great  secret  of  unity  between  the 
two. 

Unity  is  mainly  secured  by  the  law  of  sympathy 
between  the  mind  of  the  teacher  and  the  pupil  in  the 
activity  of  thought.  It  has  already  been  noted  that  the 
teacher  should  become  inspired  with  the  lesson  before 
attempting  to  hear  it;  and  when  the  recitation  comes,  the 
class  will  be  unconsciously  drawn  into  his  thought,  and 
without  conscious  means  on  the  part  of  the  teacher.  What 
I  wish  especially  to  emphasize  here  is  that  the  teacher 
must  not,  by  personal  attack  of  any  kind,  interrupt  the 
flow  of  good  feeling  between  himself  and  pupils.  While 
warmly  personal,  the  teacher  must  be  impersonal.  There 
must  be  no  personal  conflict.  Suppose  the  boy  fails  to 
recite,  the  teacher  should  not  say:  "You  have  been  trifling 
your  time  away;  I  heard  you  were  loafing  last  night 
instead  of  getting  your  lesson.  You  will  have  to  do  this 
work  all  over,  if  you  do  not  mend  your  ways."  I  know 
of  no  circumstances  under  which  a  pupil  should  be  berated 
in  the  presence  of  the  class.  He  must  be  treated  politely, 
—  that  is,  as  if  he  were  an  ideal  student.  Teachers  often 
complain  of  the  impoliteness  of  pupils;  but  teachers  are 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW,  157 

much  more  frequently  guilty  of  this  offence.  Personal 
reproof  in  class  is  a  most  common  practice,  from  the 
primary  grades  through  the  college.  The  pupil  who'  does 
poorly  should  be  privately  interviewed  by  the  teacher; 
and  then  the  case  should  be  approached  with  symi)athy, 
as  if  there  were  some  reason  for  the  poor  preparation,  — 
bad  health,  too  much  work  to  do,  visit  from  distant  rela- 
tive, etc.  It  is  easy  to  make  a  grave  blunder  by  off-hand 
charges.  It  is  safest  at  the  time  to  suppose  that  the 
failure  is  excusable,  and  then  privately  press  it  to  the  real 
reason,  commencing  with  excusable  ones. 

So  far  the  attempt  has  been  to  illustrate  the  doctrine  of 
unity  in  school-management,  when  all  minds  are  favorably 
disposed.  Through  ignorance,  thoughtlessness,  or  wil- 
fulness, unity  may  be  broken;  it  must  then  be  restored. 
This  brings  us  to  the  delicate  and  important  question :  — 

Restoration  of  Broken  Unity. 

This  topic  has,  in  general,  the  same  significance  as  that 
of  correction,  or  punishment;  but  the  wording  is  prefer- 
able, especially  to  that  of  punishment,  because  it  does  not 
convey  so  ^jrominentl}^  the  idea  of  inflicting  pain,  Avhich 
is  not  essential  to  restoration  of  unitv.  We  need  first  to 
search  out,  in  light  of  the  law  of  unity:  — 

The  Law  of  Restoration.  —  'I'liis  must  be  found  in  the 
spiritual  unit^'  of  tlie  organism;  for  it  is  this,  and  not  the 
external  form  of  unity,  that  is  to  be  restored.  When 
pupils  bolt  the  recitation,  the  mati'rial  and  external  side 


158  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

of  the  unity  is  broken;  but  this  is  only  the  result  of  the 
broken  spiritual  unity.  What  the  law  requires  is  not  a 
spatial  unity,  nor  even  a  unity  of  forced  consent;  but  the 
cheerful  purposed  co-operation  of  pupils  with  teacher. 

We  are  so  accustomed  to  think  of  this  matter  under  the 
name  and  law  of  punisliment,  tliat  it  may  be  most  easily 
approached  from  that  standpoint.  When  rightly  inter- 
preted, the  law  of  punishment  is  well  stated  in  saying: 
Punishment  must  naturally  folloiv  the  offence,  and  he  pro- 
portioned to  it.  This  has,  however,  been  most  viciously 
applied.  Suppose  a  boy  has  played  truant  a  quarter  of  a 
day;  then,  by  the  nature  of  the  offence,  it  is  thought  he 
should  remain  in  after  school  to  make  up  lost  time.  And 
to  make  it  mathematically  proportionate,  he  should  remain 
in  just  the  length  of  time  lost.  The  girl  whispers,  and 
thus  annoys  the  teacher;  it  is  but  just  that  she  be  equally 
annoyed  by  the  teacher.  One  boy  blacks  the  eye  of 
another;  and,  in  turn,  he  must  be  bruised  in  equal  area. 
An  eye  for  an  eye,  and  a  tooth  for  a  tooth.  Pupils  show 
that  they  understand  this  mathematical  system  of  justice 
by  insisting  that  the  same  number  of  lashes  should  follow 
the  same  offence.  When  offences  are  equal,  it  would  not 
do  for  the  teacher  to  give  one  boy  four  lashes  and  the 
other  five. 

This  idea  of  the  law  above  stated  must  be  put  aside  as 
a  dangerovis  one.  The  thought  of  getting  even  with  the 
offender  must  never  guide  the  teacher.  Retribution  must 
have  \io  place  in  punisliment.  It  is  external  means 
applied  to  the  external  side  of  the  offence;    it  can  never 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.     150 

reach  the  offence,  but  always  aggravates  it.  During  the 
trials  and  worry  of  the  day  the  teacher  is  in  a  mood  to 
"pay  up"  for  everything  that  annoj'S  him;  but  he  must 
crush  every  suggestion  of  the  so-called  even-handed 
justice. 

Let  it  not  be  forgotten  that  punishment,  or  correction, 
is  for  the  purpose  of  restoring  unity,  and  that  the  above 
law  is  a  statement  of  the  means  to  that  end.  The  trouble 
in  applying  tlie  law  is  in  not  noting  carefully  the  nature 
of  an  offence.  The  offence  is  in  the  will,  the  choice,  of  the 
pupil,  and  not  in  his  external  deed.  In  itself  it  is  not 
wrong  to  stay  out  of  school.  If  the  pupil  has  the  measles, 
it  is  even  right  to  remain  out.  To  be  absent  a  Aveek  is 
right,  when,  by  so  doing,  means  are  secured  to  attend 
school  two  more  weeks  than  would  otherwise  be  possible. 
Wliispering  in  itself  is  not  wrong;  under  certain  circum- 
stances it  is  deliglitfully  proper.  A  pupil  may  whistle  in 
the  bounds  of  duty  and  propriety;  there  is  no  offence  in  the 
nature  of  the  act  as  such.  It  is  only  wlien  the  pupil,  by 
such  means,  consents  to  break  tlie  unity  of  the  school  that 
liis  act  liecomes  an  offence.  The  offence  is  in  the  intention. 
His  deed  is  in  liis  mind,  A  wrong  act,  or  an  offence,  is 
a  choice  against  the  spiritual  unity  of  the  scliool.  Tlie 
pupil  may  remain  out  of  school  entirely  against  his  will; 
then  he  is  spiritually  at  one  with  the  school.  Though 
absent  in  body,  he  is  present  in  mind.  Were  he  present 
in  body  by  force,  willing  to  be  elsewhere,  he  would  still 
be  an  offender.  The  pupil  who  wills  to  remain  out  of 
achool  has  done  that  which,  if  generalized,  would  destroy 


160  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

fclie  organization,  and  tluis  defeat  its  purpose.  An  offence 
in  school  is  always  a  choice  in  a  line  of  action  which  will 
destroy,  or  tend  to  destroy,  the  school.  The  end  of  the 
school  cannot  be  attained  if  whisjjering  be  chosen  as  a 
practice.  The  pupil  who  whispers,  in  a  way,  consents  to 
that  which  tends  to  defeat  the  purpose  of  the  school.  The 
offence  is  in  his  mind,  and  not  in  his  outer  deed.  And 
this  offence  does  not  consist  in  the  mere  fact  of  con- 
senting to  whisper  in  school.  One  may  whisper  in  school 
or  other  organized  body  with  perfect  propriety.  Suppose 
a  political  speaker  or  a  minister  in  his  sermon  makes  a  good 
hit,  an  auditor  might  well  nudge  his  neighbor  and  whisper, 
"  That 's  good,  that 's  good  !  "  And  when  the  fervor  of  the 
occasion  waxes  warm  the  shout  of  an  "  Amen "  might 
further  the  interests  of  the  occasion.  The  evil  lies  only  in 
the  consent  to  do  that  kind  of  whispering  which  if  genera- 
lized would  defeat,  or  tend  to  defeat,  the  purpose  of  the 
organization.  It  is  that  whispering  which  one  would 
desire  to  conceal  from  the  will  of  the  organization  as 
embodied  in  the  ruling  officer;  it  is  that  consent  which 
has  its  universal  setting  in  a  disposition  to  destroy  the 
organization  of  which  the  individual  is  a  part,  and  for 
whose  good  the  organization  exists. 

Let  this  distinction  be  clearly  impressed;  for  a  failure 
to  distinguish  between  the  pupil's  outer  deed  and  his 
inner  spirit  is  a  fruitful  source  of  bad  management.  The 
pupil  must  purpose,  must  will,  in  harmony  with  the  end 
of  the  school  of  which  he  is  a  part.  It  is  a  spiritual 
unity.     The  pupil  is  a  spiritual  member,  and  is  in  the 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.  161 

spiritual  unity,  when  he  desires  and  purposes  the  good  of 
the  whole.  He  spiritually  severs  his  connection  with  the 
school  when  he  gives  his  mind  to  that  which  disintegrates 
the  school.  It  thus  appears  that  a  pupil,  and  the  jmpil 
alone,  has  the  power  to  sever  liis  connection  with  the 
school.  In  the  best  sense,  he  alone  can  suspend  himself. 
Wycliffe  said  that  you  cannot  excommunicate  a  man  from 
church  unless  he  first  excommunicate  liimself.  That  is, 
if  a  man  is  a  true  Christian,  and  the  church  vote  him  out, 
he  is  not  out,  but  the  church  is  out;  and  if  he  is  a  bad 
man,  and  the  church  still  claim  him,  he  and  they  are 
both  out. 

An  offence,  then,  is  the  action  of  the  will,  on  the  part 
of  either  pupil  or  teacher,  which  negatives  the  will  creating 
and  sustaining  the  school,  —  the  will  as  embodied  in,  and 
interpreted  by,  the  teacher  and  school  officers.  It  is  the 
individual's  purpose  set  counter  to  the  whole.  This  makes 
the  application  of  tlie  law  clear.  If  correction,  or  punish- 
ment, naturally  follows  the  offence,  it  is  by  an  action  of 
the  will  in  the  offender;  and  if  it  be  proportioned  to  the 
offence,  it  must  completely  reverse  the  wrong  action  of 
the  will.  The  pui)il  who  breaks  the  spiritual  unity  of  the 
school  by  choosing  against  it,  must  reverse  that  choice 
before  he  has  cancelled  his  offence.  This  makes  his 
punishment  follow  naturally  the  offence,  and  proportions 
it  to  the  offence ;  for  he  simjdy  undoes  his  wrong  act,  and 
thereby  restores  himself  to  the  institution.  The  pupil 
alone  has  the  power  to  sever  his  connection  with  the 
school;  and  he  alone  has  the  power  to  reinstate  himself 

11 


162  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

when  once  out.  Xo  mechanical  process  can  restore  the 
pupil  whose  mind  is  at  variance  with  the  institution ;  he 
must  reinstate  himself  by  changing  his  spiritual  attitude. 

Thus  briefly  we  have  suggested  how  to  restore  the  unity 
when  broken:  The  pupil  who  breaks  the  unity  must,  by 
his  own  act  of  mind,  restore  it.  And  the  law  of  punishment 
stated  at  the  outset  means  just  this:  the  deed  being  in 
the  will,  the  punishment  must  be  there  too;  and  when  the 
will  has  cancelled  its  own  deed,  the  punishment  is  exactly 
proportioned  to  the  offence.  Anything  beyond  this  is 
gratuitous  on  the  part  of  the  teacher,  and  an  aggression 
on  the  rights  of  the  pupil.  The  idea  of  retribution  is  thus 
excluded. 

School  punishment  is  not  the  application  of  external 
means;  it  is  the  struggle  the  pupil  has  with  himself  in 
order  to  subordinate  himself  to  the  purpose  of  the  school. 
To  bring  this  struggle  to  pass  is  the  business  of  the 
teacher;  knowing,  however,  that  the  work  is  essentially 
done  by  the  pupil  himself.  This  puts  the  responsibility 
where  it  belongs, —  with  the  wrongdoer.  He  must  wrestle 
with  his  own  deed.  Whatever  pain  is  suggested  by  the 
word  punishment  should  be  that  of  mental  pain.  And 
there  is  nothing  more  severe  than  for  the  pupil  to  bring 
himself  to  take  his  stand  against  his  former  action  and 
disposition. 

Application  of  the  Law.  —  The  first  practical  inference 
from  this  law  of  punishment  is  this:  The  teacher  must  at 
all  times  conduct  himself  as  if  it  were  the  pupil's  business 
to  correct  his  own  deed,  and  not  as  if  it  were  the  teacher's 


THE  ORGiVNISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.  163 

business  to  adjust  the  case  for  liim.  Teachers  talk  among 
themselves,  and  with  pupils,  as  if  it  were  tlie  teacher's 
work  to  adjust  tlie  pupil's  mischief.  If  a  boy  in  the  liigh 
school  plays  truant,  the  question  is  not  what  the  teacher 
is  going  to  do  about  it,  but  wliat  is  the  boy  going  to  do 
about  it.  Pupils  sent  from  the  grades  to  the  superin- 
tendent for  correction  su})pose  that  he  is  to  do  something 
with  tliem  that  will  Sfjuaro  the  account.  In  such  cases  tlie 
superintendent  should  be  passive,  only  witnessing  what 
disposition  they  make  of  their  own  deed.  He  should  aid, 
of  course,  b}'  whatever  suggestions  and  directions  he  may 
find  helpful;  but  the  pupil  must  feel  that  he  alone  can 
make  right  his  own  wrong.  Nothing  done  by  any  one  else 
can  reach  the  case.  This  does  not  mean  that  the  teacher 
is  to  do  nothing,  but  only  suggests  the  attitude  in  his 
doing.  Just  what  he  is  to  do  may  also  be  inferred  from 
the  nature  of  a  wrong  deed. 

The  pupil,  to  correct  his  deed,  must  see  its  relation  to 
the  school,  and  then  must  decide  to  act  in  harmony  with 
the  school.  For  the  sake  of  clearness,  suppose  that  a  young 
man  in  college  bolts  the  recitation.  B}^  so  doing  he  has 
given  his  consent  to  break  up  the  institution;  for  he  has 
done  that  which,  if  done  by  all,  would  defeat  the  purpose 
of  the  school.  His  act  tends  to  destroy  the  organization. 
Now  what  is  to  be  done  with  him?  No;  what  is  he  to  do 
with  himself?  He  must  see  the  meaning  of  his  act;  and, 
in  the  light  of  what  he  sees,  must  choose  to  co-operate  to 
the  end  for  which  the  school  is  established.  This  was  his 
contract  when  he  entered,  by  the  very  fact  of  his  entrance. 


164  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

If  he  should  remain  out,  the  case  is  settled,  for  he  has  a 
right  to  withdraw.  But  if  he  should  present  himself  for 
admission,  he  should  be  informed  that  he  is  no  longer  a 
part  of  the  institution.  At  this  .point  the  burden  of  cor- 
rection rests  with  the  student.  If  he  manifests  a  desire 
to  reinstate  himself,  he  should  be  asked  to  explain  why  a 
pupil  should  not  desert  the  class.  This  reason  he  should 
work  out  in  a  clear,  logical,  and  convincing  argument.  It 
could  be  made  a  splendid  exercise  in  demonstrative  rea- 
soning, and  would  be  more  valuable  to  the  young  man 
than  to  prove  the  Pythagorean  proposition.  Suppose  he 
says  that  he  cannot  see  clearly  why  a  student  should  not 
bolt.  In  this  case  he  should  drop  his  regular  studies 
and  become  a  specialist  on  the  subject  of  bolting.  He 
should  have  kind  and  sympathetic  help  while  struggling 
out  of  school  with  this  problem;  he  should  be  asked  to 
present  his  solution  as  soon  as  he  has  it  worked  out ;  but 
he  should  not,  under  any  consideration,  be  permitted  to 
work  with  the  school  until  he  is  clear  on  the  point  of 
bolting.  I  do  not  mean  that  he  should  not  be  permitted 
to  remain  in  the  study  room  while  working  out  his 
problem;  but  that  he  should  not  be  included  with  other 
students  in  the  regular  school  work.  He  should  not  par- 
ticipate in  any  of  the  regular  school  exercises;  yet  his 
presence  in  the  school-room,  where  he  can  receive  sugges- 
tions, and  so  that  he  will  not  be  delayed  in  making  his 
report  as  soon  as  he  has  it  ready,  is  desirable.  It  would 
be  a  rash  and  dangerous  mistake  to  thrust  the  pupil  out 
of  the  school-room,  proclaiming  a  suspension  or  an  expul- 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW.  165 

sion.  Although  the  pupil  is  really  out  by  his  own  act, 
he  is  out  of  the  spiritual  unity,  and  not  necessarily  out-of- 
doors.  He  miglit,  for  a  time,  at  least,  be  entertained  as 
a  polite  visitor,  or  assisted  as  a  student  taking  a  special 
course. 

When  the  young  man  shows  that  he  sees  his  duty 
clearly,  that  ends  the  matter,  for  the  present  at  least. 
Most  cases  of  disorder  arise  from  lack  of  clear  perception 
of  the  pupil's  relation  to  the  school;  and  the  teacher  must 
rely  on  bringing  the  pupil  to  a  realizing  sense  of  this  rela- 
tion to  remedy  disorder.  Besides,  it  is  unsafe  to  question 
the  pupil's  motive  by  making  further  requisition  till  ne- 
cessary. To  take  a  step  that  might  not  be  needed  would 
undo  all  that  had  been  done,  and  incite  to  worse  conduct  in 
the  future.  On  second  offence,  the  teacher  might  remark, 
"I  thought  you  understood  the  matter  clearly."  If  he  ad- 
mits that  it  was  not  so  clear  as  he  had  supposed,  he  must 
be  put  to  work  out  his  relations  to  the  school  as  before; 
but  if  he  proves  that  he  does  understand  the  nuitter,  then 
the  teacher  is  to  take  the  last  step,  appealing  to  the  will, 
and  that  is  to  ask  him  what  he  is  going  to  do  about  it. 
If  he  says  that  he  does  not  know,  he  should  be  asked  to 
return  and  report  as  soon  as  he  has  his  mind  made  up. 
This  is  a  very  serious  process,  and  he  should  be  given 
time  to  make  it  up  well.  But  usually  the  first  step  is  the 
most  difficult.  Whfn  the  nature  of  the  wrong  deed  is 
seen  clearly,  the  choice  readily  follows,  except  in  cases 
of  stubbornness.  To  awaken  thought  on  the  question  is 
usually  sufficient  to  correct  the  evil;  but  this  is  not  neces* 


166  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

sarily  so.  The  pupil  should  not  be  reinstated  until  he 
affirms  his  intention  to  do  nothing  except  that  which 
furthers  the  work  of  the  school.  Note  this:  it  is  not 
enough  for  him  to  resolve  against  truancy;  he  must 
resolve  to  preserve  unity.  He  might  pledge  himself 
against  truancy  and  have  a  mental  reservation  to  substi- 
tute some  other  form  of  evil.  He  may  thus  invent  faster 
than  the  teacher  can  correct.  If  pupils  flip  shot  in  time 
of  school,  and  this  particular  offence  be  corrected,  they 
will  surely  flip  beans  next;  and  this  being  corrected,  they 
will  at  once  resort  to  paper  wads;  and  so  on  ad  infinitum. 
The  correction  to  be  effective  must  be  universal.  The 
particular  form  of  evil  is  a  matter  of  no  consequence;  we 
are  concerned  only  with  that  disposition  in  the  pupil 
which  can  develop  forms  of  evil  infinitely.  The  particular 
evil  which  the  teacher  detects  must  be  taken  only  as  a  sign 
of  a  constitutional  trouble  which  must  have  constitutional 
treatment.  This,  and  not  the  form  of  vice,  the  teacher 
must  remedy.  And  to  this  end  it  matters  not  what  form 
the  offence  may  take;  the  teacher  must  press  these  two 
questions:  Do  you  see?  What  are  you  going  to  do  about 
it?  But  what  if  he  break  his  resolution?  This  is  no 
proof  that  he  was  insincere  in  making  it.  He  should  then 
repeat  his  former  process.  It  may  prove  finally  that  he 
is  not  honest  in  his  effort.  Then  the  way  is  clear;  for  he 
should  have  no  further  opportunity  to  reinstate  himself. 
But  so  long  as  he  is  honestly  striving,  he  is  gaining 
strength,  and  should  not  be  excluded  from  school.  It  is 
not  safe  to  accuse  a  pupil  of  falsehood  simply  because  he 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  1G7 

fails  to  cany  out  his  affirmed  intention,  !^^uoh  pati«'nce 
must  be  exercised,  and  the  process  with  the  pupil  rei)eated 
so  long  as  he  is  gaining  strength  thereby;  unless  the 
welfare  of  the  school  is  too  much  endangered, —  tlie  loss 
to  the  school  greater  than  the  gnin  to  the  pupil. 

In  the  foregoing  case  of  correction  there  is  more  or  less 
of  authority  exercised  over  the  student,  inasmuch  as  he  is 
not  permitted  to  choose  freely  for  liimself  in  the  matter. 
A  change  in  this  respect  takes  place  in  passing  from  the 
college  to  the  university  student.  The  university  student 
is  supposed  to  have  brought  himself  under  tlie  rule  of 
reason,  —  to  be  able  to  think  things  under  universal  rela- 
tions, and  to  regulate  conduct  by  universal  principles.  He 
practically  gives  law  to  the  university.  He  largely  deter- 
mines its  general  policy,  and  chooses  to  do  as  his  own 
reason  may  dictate,  within  the  limits  of  general  morality, 
and  his  fitness  to  do  certain  work,  wliieli  must  be  deter- 
mined by  others.  IJut  whetlier  the  student  attend  a 
particular  lecture  at  a  particular  time  on  a  particular  point 
must  be  left  to  him.  The  teacher  holds  him  only  for  the 
general  outcome  of  his  work,  knowing  that  the  student  is 
able,  or  should  be  able,  to  best  guide  liimself  in  the  details 
of  his  progress,  free  from  the  minute  supervision  which 
must  be  imposed  on  the  more  immature  student.  The 
teacher  in  the  university  has  only  to  pronounce  judgment  on 
the  attainment  of  the  student  as  to  the  subject  in  which  the 
teacher  gives  instruction.  What  a  university  student  may 
properly  do  would  not  be  proper  for  the  kindergarten 
student,  the  primary  student,  or  even  the  high  school  or 


168  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

college  student.  External  authority  decreases  in  moving 
upward ;  the  possible  points  at  which  law  may  be  violated 
increase  in  passing  downward.  This  suggests  that  one 
thing  ought  to  be  made  clear  to  the  student  from  the  begin- 
ning, and  as  rapidly  as  possible ;  namely,  the  reasonableness 
in  obeying  authority, —  those  who  interpret  and  apply  the 
law.  And  further,  the  change  here  indicated  in  passing 
from  the  kindergarten  to  the  university  student,  ought  to 
suggest  to  the  teacher  that,  in  making  corrections,  he  take 
the  development  of  the  pupil  into  the  account. 

The  treatment  of  the  college  student,  as  in  the  case 
supposed,  is  somewhat  simplified  by  the  fact  that  he  is 
supposed  to  be  out  from  under  home  control.  The  case  of 
the  high  school  student  is  different;  for  parents  have 
something  to  do  in  shaping  his  school  conduct.  The  steps 
in  correction  are  the  same;  but  there  may  be  cases  in 
which  it  is  necessary  for  the  parent  to  assist  the  student, 
to  see  his  relation  to  the  school,  and  to  strengthen  his 
resolution  to  keep  in  harmony  with  the  general  good.  If 
the  young  lady  whispers,  she  must  first  show  why  such 
conduct  defeats  the  purpose  of  the  school,  and  therein 
is  highway  robbery  of  the  taxgatherer.  If  she  cannot 
readily  work  this  problem  out,  she  should  drop  all  other 
studies  until  her  deficiency  is  made  up.  She  has  really 
suspended  herself;  but  it  is  no  use  to  be  harsh,  and  have 
her  pack  her  books  for  home.  Simply  change  her  work 
for  a  more  important  line  of  investigation,  —  for  some- 
thing really  practical  in  life.  She  may  go  to  church 
some  time,  and  it  will  be  worth  everything  to  all  parties 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.     169 

concerned  for  her  to  know  the  ground  of  silence  in 
organized  assemblies.  Her  religion  depends  upon  it. 
The  teacher  must  be  patient  in  giving  assistance;  and 
when  lie  finds  that  his  suggestions  may  not  be  sufficient, 
he  should  suggest  that  she  ask  for  help  at  home;  for 
certainly  her  parents  know  Avhy  silence  is  the  law  of  the 
school.  I  am  supposing  here,  for  the  sake  of  the  illustra- 
tion, what  is  not  likely  to  happen;  for  a  high  school  girl 
can  easily  make  clear  the  law  against  communication  in 
school.  A  teacher  does  not  yield  his  authority  in  bringing 
parents  into  such  discussions.  Nothing  is  lost;  every- 
thing is  gained:  a  clear,  mutual  understanding  all  around, 
with  the  co-operation  of  the  parents.  It  is  all  firm,  fair, 
calm,  and  just  dealing.  Let  us  say  again  to  the  teacher 
that  such  a  course  is  no  condescension  from  the  throne  of 
authority;  for  the  authority  is  not  in  the  teacher,  but  in 
the  nature  of  the  school  and  the  work  to  be  done.  On  the 
other  hand,  the  parent  has  no  right  to  shirk  duty,  and 
inform  the  teacher  that  if  he  cannot  manage  the  school  he 
had  better  give  way  to  some  one  who  can.  The  pupil  is 
his  child,  and  he  is,  in  a  sense,  responsible  for  her  con- 
duct, and  should  be  glad  of  any  opportunity  afforded  by 
the  teacher  to  help  form  it. 

When  the  reason  against  communication  has  been  clearly 
worked  out,  then  the  case  may  be  dismissed  as  before,' 
confidently  expecting  improved  conduct  in  the  future.  If 
the  offence  should  be  repeated,  and  perception  of  duty 
tested  as  before,  then  she  is  ready  for  the  question, 
"What  are  you  going  to  do   about  it?"      She    may  not 


170  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

know  at  fii'st;  but  the  teacher  must  keep  cool,  anrl  give 
her  time  to  find  out.  If  she  cannot  decide  to  desist  from 
communication,  she  should  not  re-enter  school.  This  is 
suspension  by  her  own  act.  I  have  often  been  asked  what 
the  teacher  would  do  if  the  school  board  should  sustain 
the  pupil.  I  cannot  conceive  of  such  a  case.  What 
school  board  would  ever  support  the  student  who  has 
taken  his  stand  in  favor  of  any  evil  line  of  action?  The 
trouble  with  the  teacher  in  such  cases  is  that  he  does  not 
bring  the  matter  to  the  square  issue.  Let  the  teacher  ask 
the  pupil  in  the  presence  of  the  board  what  she  intends  to 
do  in  respect  to  the  matter  under  question ;  and  in  the  case 
supposed  the  board  cannot  say,  "Let  her  communicate;" 
for  the  fearful  results  from  such  an  order  from  the  school 
board  would  be  too  obvious  to  need  discussion. 

The  same  steps  in  punishment  for  the  high  school  pupil 
are  required  for  the  grade  below;  the  difference  is  in  the 
manner  of  treatment.  The  primary  pupil  can  make  clear 
the  reason  against  all  the  general  forms  of  bad  conduct. 
Through  his  instinctive  obedience  he  will  do  what  he 
thinks  the  teacher  desires;  yet  the  teacher  must  sub- 
stitute, as  rapidly  as  possible,  rational  self-control  for 
natural  obedience.  Pupils  must  be  led  to  see  wh}'  certain 
conduct  is  beautiful  and  good,  aside  from  the  will  of  the 
teacher,  and  should  be  exercised  in  freedom  to  follow  their 
own  insight  into  duty  as  revealed  by  their  relation  to  work 
being  done. 

The  most  troublesome  cases  will  appear  in  the  inter- 
mediate grades.      These  pupils  have  passed  the  stage  of 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.     171 

natural  obedience,  and  have  not  yet  arrived  at  rational 
self-control.  They  are  becoming  conscious  of  will  power, 
and  are  beginning  to  assert  their  individuality  against 
everything  else.  This  is  the  young  American  who  knows 
no  law  but  his  ow:\  caprice.  But  the  process  in  punisli- 
ment,  except  in  details,  must  be  the  same  as  before  de- 
scribed. He  will  need  more  frequent  applications  of  the 
process,  and  a  more  patient  working  out  of  details. 

The  teacher  who  reads  these  suggestions  must  not  sup- 
pose that  tlie  law  will  apply  itself;  or  that  all  cases  of 
bad  conduct  will  be  satisfactorily  rearhed  l)y  it.  There 
may  be  some  cases  that  nothing  will  correct;  and  then, 
too,  there  is  a  world  of  difference  in  the  tact  of  the  teacher 
in  applying  the  law.  Every  case  has  its  peculiarities, 
and  the  details  of  correction  must  shape  tliemselves  in  the 
process  of  correction.  Let  the  teacher  who  finds  this  law 
to  fail  him  —  and  there  are  such  —  announce  the  law  under 
which  he  succeeds. 

The  two  foregoing  steps  move  inevitably  either  to  the 
correction  of  the  pupil,  or  to  his  exclusion  from  school. 
The  latter  end  is  to  be  deplored.  But  what  can  be  done  ? 
Is  there  no  third  step  to  apply  to  those  whom  moral  suasion 
will  not  reach  ?  None  of  universal  application.  When  the 
pupil's  will  proves  to  be  firm  and  resolute  against  the  law 
and  order  of  the  school,  nothing  but  the  application  of 
physical  force  could  be  suggested, —  some  way  of  reaching 
the  mind  through  the  body, —  corporal  punishment  in  its 
various  forms.  But  it  is  obvious  at  once  that  such  means 
applied  to  a  university  student  would  make  matters  worse  ; 


172  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

the  college  student  could  not  be  persuaded  thereby; 
.and  there  is  something  in  tlie  personal  pride  and  dignity  of 
the  high  school  pupil  that  would  resent  such  treatment. 
We  cannot  speak  thus  positively  in  passing  from  the  eighth 
grade  downward  to  the  kindergarten ;  and  yet  are  we  not 
willing  to  exempt  the  eighth  grade  ;  and  perhaps  the  seventh 
also  ?  And  below  these  would  it  do  at  all  to  apply  corporal 
punishment  to  the  large  number  of  refined,  sensitive,  and 
well-meaning  children  ? 

It  thus  appears  that  corporal  punishment  is  not  a  uni- 
versal mode  of  correction.  No  one  believes  in  its  general 
application ;  and  many  deny  its  virtue  altogether.  Even 
laws  have  been  passed  prohibiting  the  teacher  from  laying 
hands  on  the  pupil  by  way  of  punishment.  Yet  there 
are  those  who  would  not  spare  the  rod,  lest  they  spoil 
the  child.  This  may  be  one  of  those  questions  which  have 
two  sides.  Do  not  those  who  condemn  it  altogether 
do  so  because  it  is  an  improper  method  for  the  great 
mass  of  students,  and  only  suitable  to  the  exceptional 
few ;  and  because,  moreover,  when  it  might  otherwise  be 
proper,  it  is  applied  in  anger,  and  so  as  to  injure  the  body 
of  the  pupil?  For  these  reasons  it  is  thought  much  safer 
not  to  use  it  at  all,  than  to  do  so  indiscriminately  ;  and  with 
the  further  risk  of  its  being  used  by  the  high-tempered  and 
reckless  teacher.  In  this  the  law  forbidding  corporal 
punishment  seems  well  grounded.  And  yet  cannot  any  one 
point  out  in  some  community  a  wrong-headed,  tough  urchin 
who  would  not  be  degraded  by  chastisement  with  the  rod, 
and  who  would  be  improved  thereby,  —  one  who,  all  par- 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  173 

ties  would  agree,  must  be  managed  by  such  method  at 
the  hands  of  somebody  ?  Are  there  not  pupils  whose 
integument  is  the  only  avenue  to  the  mainspring  of  con- 
duct ?  Some  appeal  must  be  made ;  and  if  no  other  mo- 
tive to  action  is  available,  sensations  must  be  resorted  to. 
This,  therefore,  is  not  a  new  mode  of  punishment,  but  only 
one  of  the  methods  of  appeal  made  necessary  because  ol 
the  absence  of  higher  motives  to  action.  The  disgrace 
is  not  in  the  fact  of  such  punishment  being  a  painful 
physical  operation, —  if  so,  amputation  of  a  limb  would  be 
still  more  disgraceful,  —  but  in  the  degradation  implied  in 
assuming  the  absence  of  anything  but  animal  sensibilities. 
The  pupil  must  be  taken  on  the  plane  of  his  present  life,  in 
order  to  elevate  him  above  his  present  life.  Punishment,  as 
well  as  instruction,  must  follow  the  law  of  apperception. 

The  whole  question  is  this :  The  instincts,  passions, 
and  motives  of  some  pupils  being  as  they  are,  can  an 
effective  appeal  be  made  without  some  form  of  corporal 
application?  Can  any  one  show  that  it  is  improper  under  all 
circumstances  for  a  teacher  to  lay  hands  on  the  pupil  ? 
Suppose  an  intoxicated  and  enraged  pupil  break  boister- 
ously into  the  school-room  and  assault  a  pupil  against 
whom  he  is  enraged,  should  not  the  teacher  extemporize 
a  police  force  at  once,  and  exclude  him  from  the  room  ?  A 
teacher  can  readily  imagine  a  hundred  instances  in  which 
hands  must  be  laid  upon  the  pujjil.  All  of  which  may  be 
most  improbable,  but  it  serves  to  prove  that  the  application 
of  physical  force  is  a  proper  thing  in  itself.  But  aside 
from  such  special  outbreaks,  are  there  not  cases  now  and 


174  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

theu  among  young  pupils  in  wliich  a  kindly  corporal 
chastisement  might  save  society  from  having  to  inflict  more 
barbarous  punishment  later  in  life  ? 

Suppose  in  all  such  cases  the  teacher  is  forbidden  to  use 
physical  persuasion  :  somebody  must  do  it.  Society  has  yet 
found  no  way  to  avoid  laying  hands  on  some  individuals. 
However  squeamish  we  may  be  about  the  matter,  the  indi- 
vidual must  yet  have  corporal  punishment  by  some  author- 
ized agency  of  social  welfare.  The  moment  a  school  board 
forbids  the  teacher  to  lay  hands  on  a  pupil  by  way  of  pun- 
ishment, the  need  arises  for  some  one  outside  the  regular 
teaching  force  whose  duty  it  is  to  perform  the  objection- 
able task.  Just  now,  in  one  of  our  largest  cities,  the  board 
are  being  brought  to  consider  the  establishment  of  "pa- 
rental schools  "  5  where,  it  is  the  presumption,  the  teacher 
may  inflict  such  punishment  as  the  law  permits  the  parent 
to  inflict.  If  the  board  had  kept  quiet  on  the  question  of 
corporal  punishment,  trusting  to  the  selection  of  a  proper 
teaching  force  as  the  best  means  of  solution,  they  would 
not  have  been  brought  to  the  humorous  situation  of  having 
to  legalize  the  practice  of  corporal  punishment.  And  if  the 
board  shirk  the  duty  of  providing  for  pupils  who  must  be 
appealed  to  on  the  physical  plane,  the  civil  authorities 
must  take  care  of  them.  If  a  boy  is  not  decently  switched 
in  school  by  the  teacher,  he  may  have  to  be  indecently 
cudgelled  by  the  police  after  expulsion  from  school.  The 
last  thing  the  public  school  should  permit  is  the  with- 
drawal or  the  expulsion  of  the  pupil  from  school.  The 
welfare  of  society  requires  that  all  children  should  have  a 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING     THE    LAW.  175 

public  school  education.  Along  witli  the  spread  of  the  doc- 
trine of  compulsory  education  — the  logical  conclusion  from 
the  doctrine  of  a  free  public  school  supported  by  the  taxa- 
tion of  all  —  must  follow  the  corollary  requiring  that  some 
means  be  provided  to  the  fullest  extent  possible  for  holding 
the  badly-behaved  element  in  school  as  long  as  possible, 
whoever  may  have  to  discharge  the  police  duty. 

But  if  the  law  and  the  sentiment  against  corporal 
punishment  are  not  wholly  correct,  they  will  serve  to  cor- 
rect the  outrageous  abuses  of  the  once  prevailing  system  by 
limiting  corporal  punishment  to  the  exceptionally  few 
cases  to  which  at  most  it  is  applicable  ;  and  by  causing 
teachers  to  be  more  artful  and  patient  in  the  use  of  the 
proper  and  universal  methods  of  reform.  In  fact  a  teacher 
sliould  not  expect  to  use  corporal  punishment, —  should 
even  be  resolved  not  to  do  so,  if  you  wish,  —  but  that  he 
may  render  the  most  efficient  disciplinary  service,  no  school 
board  should  tie  his  hands  by  publicly  forbidding  its  use. 

The  application  of  the  law  of  unity  to  punishment 
carries  with  it  many  vital  consequences.  In  the  effort  to 
restore  unity  through  punishment,  the  teacher  too  often 
widens  the  chasm.  This  arises  from  the  fact  that  he  bears 
himself  as  if  he  were  the  law  of  the  school.  He  is  the 
author  and  executor  of  the  law;  whereas  the  law  is  in- 
herent in  the  school,  and  he,  as  well  as  the  pupil,  is 
amenable  to  that  law.  The  procedure  which  has  been 
suggested  would  force  on  the  attention  of  the  pupil  the 
fact  that  the  law  of  the  school  is  given  in  the  purpose  and 
nature  of  the  school,  and  that  neither  teacher  nor  board 


176  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

can  legislate  beyond  the  law  imposed  by  the  end  sought. 
The  pupil  must  feel  that  tlie  teacher  regards  matters  thus, 
and  not  that  his  personality  is  set  against  that  of  the 
pupil.  The  teacher  must  step  aside  and  let  the  pupil 
wrestle  with  the  law  which  he  himself  expounds  as  arising 
from  the  work  to  be  done  in  the  school. 

Many  of  the  serious  difficulties  of  management  arise 
from  the  bearing  and  words  of  the  teacher,  which  pro- 
claim that  he  is  "  boss "  of  the  institution,  and  has  the 
power  in  his  right  arm  to  quell  any  riot  that  may  occur. 
This  attitude  will  always  break  the  fundamental  unity,  — 
the  unity  between  teacher  and  pupils.  The  two  parties 
thus  formed  each  strive  with  the  other  for  the  mastery; 
and  from  the  larger  number  and  the  industrious  ingenuity 
on  the  part  of  the  pupils,  it  is  no  wonder  that  the  teacher 
is  so  often  out-generaled.  If  it  is  a  personal  fight,  why 
not?  If  the  teacher  would  keep  his  personality  out  of  the 
question,  and  aid  the  pupil  to  interpret  and  apply  the  law 
to  which  both  must  render  obedience,  the  pupil  could  not 
but  admire  the  dignity  and  firm  justice  of  the  system,  and 
esteem  the  teacher  who  so  patiently  and  emphatically  aids 
him  to  see  the  ground  of  the  law,  and  to  render  obedience 
thereto.  There  is  no  reason  why  a  teacher  who  has 
common  sense  and  sympathy,  and  who  proceeds  in  a  busi- 
ness-like way  in  correcting  the  evil-doer,  should  drive  the 
pupil  from  him. 

Such  a  procedure  would  correct  the  false  sense  of  honor 
among  pupils,  of  which  we  hear  so  much.  A  pupil  will 
generally  screen  his  fellow  and  baffle  the  teacher  in  pursuit 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW.  177 

of  an  evil-doer.  I  find  that  teachers  generally  consider 
this  honorable  conduct  on  the  part  of  the  pupil;  and  as 
things  are,  I  suppose  it  is  so.  When  the  teacher  sets  his 
personality  against  the  school,  who  blames  the  pu})il  for 
standing  by  his  friend  as  against  another  person?  When 
the  teacher  asks  him  to  bear  witness  against  a  pupil  in 
favor  of  order,  he  refuses  to  do  so,  feeling  that  his  first 
duty  is  to  his  boon  companion.  Teachers  claim  that  it  is 
not  right  for  a  teacher  to  ask  a  pupil  to  report  the  bad 
conduct  of  another;  and  they  must  claim  this  on  the 
ground  that  such  a  course  violates  the  pupil's  proper 
and  strong  attachment  to  his  fellow-pupil,  to  serve  the 
teacher's  personal  gain.  The  teacher  has  inculcated  the 
thought  that  the  school  is  his  school;  and  the  pupils 
properly  think,  "Let  him  take  care  of  it;  we  shall  not 
help  him  to  manage  us."  If  the  pupils  feel  that  it  is 
their  school,  and  that  the  teacher  is  simply  to  lielp  tliem 
to  make  it  beautiful  and  good,  the  sentiment  of  lionor 
would  change  from  the  feeling  of  honorable  conduct 
towards  a  comrade  as  against  a  teacher,  to  that  of  lionor- 
able  conduct  towards  the  school  wliicli  is  for  the  good  of 
all  his  comrades. 

Now  it  is  not  only  proper  but  obligatory  on  a  pupil  to 
report  anything  that  tends  to  destroy  the  successful  work- 
ing of  the  school.  Courts  of  justice  act  on  this  assumption, 
and  imprison  the  man  refusing  to  give  the  information. 
Tf  a  pupil  should  see  a  stranger  set  fire  to  the  scliool 
building,  the  fact  would  instantly  be  proclaimed;  and  the 
same  would  be  expected  should  tlio  incendiary  be  a  friend 

18 


178  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

of  the  pupil  He  would  certainly  deny  the  incendiary  to 
be  liis  friend.  What  is  tlie  difference  between  the  pupil's 
setting  fire  to  the  building,  and  doing  anything  else  that 
would  defeat  the  purpose  of  the  scliool?  A  pupil  cannot 
wilfully  screen  any  wrong-doer  without  taking  his  stand 
against  the  essential  law  of  the  school.  It  is  a  choice  to 
favor  the  one  against  the  whole  number  constituting  the 
school,  and  not  against  the  arbiti-ary  will  of  the  teacher. 
No,  it  does  not  encourage  tattling,  for  tattling  has  malice 
in  it.  1  do  not  mean  that,  as  a  rule,  the  teacher  should 
use  this  method  of  finding  out  what  is  going  on,  but  wish 
to  emphasize  the.  relation  that  should  exist  between  the 
teacher  and  the  pupil.  They  should  be  in  such  close 
partnership,  and  on  such  good  terms  and  fair  understand- 
ing with  each  other,  that  the  teacher  can  get  whatever  it 
is  necessary  for  Inni  to  know.  He  should  not  embarrass 
pupils  by  asking  for  evidence,  unless  it  is  absolutely 
essential;  nor  should  a  pupil  be  made  to  feel  that  it  is  his 
business  to  inspect  other  pupils'  conduct,  having  enough 
to  do  to  attend  to  his  own.  The  teacher  himself  ought 
not  to  assume  the  function  of  a  spy;  he  should  mingle  with 
pupils  in  an  open  and  business-like  way,  and  not  be  con- 
tinually exercising  his  authority  miscellaneously.  For 
instance,  it  is  not  proper,  in  meeting  a  pupil  on  the  street, 
to  assail  him  with  questions  of  conduct,  even  though  the 
pupil  may  then  be  playing  truant.  At  such  times  the  pupii 
must  be  met  on  the  social  plane,  and  the  conversation 
should  run  on  general  matters  of  the  pupil's  interest. 
The  teacher  should  always  mingle  with  pupils  on  the 


THE  ORGANISM   EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  179 

plane  of  polite  society,  and  when  more  rugged  duties 
come,  let  there  be  a  time  and  place  where  matters  are  dis- 
posed of  iu  a  business-like  way. 

It  is  often  urged  that  a  pupil  should  receive  his  corporal 
punislunent  before  the  school,  to  deter  others  from  offence. 
This  is  vicious  doctrine.  If  corporal  punishment  is  ever 
])roper,  it  should  be  given  in  secret.  The  teacher  then 
maintains  the  bond  of  resj^ect  between  himself  and  the 
[lupil,  because  the  pupil's  personality  is  respected  in  the 
punishment. 

Another  vital  consequence  of  the  application  of  the  law 
of  unity  to  punishment  is  the  relief  from  the  worry  and 
nervous  strain  of  the  teacher.  The  teacher,  instead  of 
putting  liiniself  in  conflict  with  the  pupil,  puts  the  pupil  in 
conflict  with  himself.  The  pupil  cannot  be  helped  except 
by  self-conflict;  and  the  teacher  who  assumes  the  pupil's 
trouble  breaks  his  own  nerve,  and  defeats  moral  discipline 
iu  the  pupil.  The  principle  of  correction  insisted  on 
throughout  requires  tlie  teacher  to  fi.x  it  up  so  that  the 
pupil  must  wrestle  with  his  own  deed.  This  requires  skill 
and  ingenuity,  but  no  more  worry  than  the  performance 
of  any  other  duty  or  tlic  solution  of  any  other  ditticult 
problem.  It  must  not  be  understood  that  the  teacher  is 
to  take  indifferent  ease  in  the  matter,  —  not  at  all :  it 
requires  patience,  careful  study,  and  wise  generalship; 
l)ut  this  is  not  worry  and  vexation  at  wrong-doing.  Can 
there  be  any  reason  why  a  patient,  faithful,  conscientious 
teacher  should  have  the  dear  life  worried  out  of  him  by  a 
saucy  boy  or  girl?     Why  should  a  teacher  who  is  faith- 


180  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

ful  not  be  happy,  instead  of  fretting  himself  because 
of  evil-doers?  Xo,  it  must  be  fixed  so  that  the  pupil 
wrestle  with  his  own  deed.  Remember  the  advice  which 
one  guest  gave  to  another  who  broke  the  quiet  of  the 
niglit  by  walking  the  floor  because  his  debt  was  due  on 
the  morrow  without  a  cent  for  payment :  "  Go  to  bed  and 
let  the  other  fellow  walk  the  floor ! "  So  should  the 
teacher  shape  up  business  that  he  may  go  to  bed  and  let 
the  other  fellow  walk  the  floor. 

Rather  than  worry,  is  there  not  some  reason  for  rejoi- 
cing in  finding  evil  manifested?  Suppose  the  boy  desire  to 
cut  the  desk,  should  not  the  teacher  be  pleased  that  the 
symptom  should  appear?  If  the  cut  is  in  the  boy,  let  it 
come  out,  that  he  may  be  helped  to  face  his  deed  now,  and 
escape  being  a  vandal  when  grown  up.  Let  the  teacher, 
in  calm  patience  and  joy  of  opportunity,  give  such  sym- 
pathetic counsel  as  the  pupil  may  need  in  making  the  desk 
and  himself  whole.  There  should  be  no  excitement;  the 
teacher  should  not  throw  the  pupil  and  the  desk  out-of- 
doors,  nor  disfigure  the  body  of  the  pupil  as  a  fair  offset 
to  his  disfigurement  of  the  desk.  There  should  be  no 
haste;  the  pupil  may  well  consume  a  week  in  home  con- 
sultation and  private  meditation  between  sessions,  plan- 
ning the  best  solution  of  the  difficult3\  And  all  the  time 
the  teacher  should  rejoice  in  the  purifying  turmoil;  and 
sooner  or  later  the  desk  and  the  boy  are  made  sound  and 
ready  for  service.  If  the  boy  desires  to  write  his  auto- 
graph on  the  floor  in  ink,  the  teacher  should  be  pleased 
to  have  him  do  so;  the  problem  of  rubbing  it  off  can  be 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.  181 

made  so  purifying  and  tonie  to  his  blood.  Such  exjjeri- 
ence  in  erasing  sin  ought  to  be  one  of  the  most  delightful 
studies  of  tlie  teacher.  Why  should  he  have  to  resort  to 
fiction  to  find  types  of  people  whose  conscience  is  wringing 
a  sinful  heart,  wlien,  with  such  opportunity',  it  is  his  busi- 
ness to  conduct  the  conscience-wringing  process. 

After  wliat  has  been  said,  tlie  teacher  must  not  suppose 
that  the  piime  art  of  school  management  consists  in  the 
restoration  of  broken  unity,  but  rather  in  preserving  the 
unity  intact  from  the  outset.  The  best  government  is  not 
that  which  quells  the  mob,  but  that  which  prevents  the 
occurrence  of  one.  The  highest  ambition  of  the  teacher 
must  never  be  to  display  power  and  ingenuity  in  bringing 
order  out  of  confusion,  but  in  avoiding  the  confusion  by 
perfect  adjustment  of  conditions  and  skilful  instruction. 
This  is  the  ounce  of  prevention  once  more.  Hence  the 
skill  in  management  to  which  the  teacher  should  aspire  is 
that  of  rendering  skill  useless. 

This  suggests  the  scientific  princijde  for  testing  school 
management, — the  test  of  the  beautiful.  An  object  is 
rated  beautiful  wiion  the  moving  energy  in  it  is  felt  not 
to  be  liindered  by  tho  nl)ject.  A  train  is  beautiful  when 
the  forward-moving  energy  is  felt  not  to  be  in  bondage 
to  the  train.  Wlien  a  train  is  felt  to  be  lieavily  laden,  the 
engine  puffing  and  tlie  wlieels  slii)])ing,  awakening  in  tlie 
observer  a  consciousness  of  strain,  it  is  thought  to  be 
ugly.  Any  instrument  or  organization  designed  to  do  a 
given  work,  and  stored  with  energy  in  that  direction,   is 


182  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

beautiful  wheu  the  instrument  or  organization  does  not 
limit  its  own  energy.  A  plant  or  an  animal  is  beautiful 
wlien  the  vital  force  is  triumphant  over  bodily  organiza- 
tion. The  school  is  animated  and  moved  by  a  scliool 
energy,  whieli,  as  we  have  seen,  is  ultimately  located 
in  the  pupil.  For  the  school  to  be  beautiful,  —  well- 
managed, —  this  energy  must  not  be  in  bondage  to  the 
organization ;  but  the  energy  must  seem  to  move  freely  to 
the  end  set  up.  When  there  is  application  of  external 
force,  the  school  energy  moving  out  from  its  centre  in  the 
pupil  is  felt  to  be  interfered  with,  and  tlie  school  said  to 
be  ugly.  Hence  a  scliool  is  beautiful  and  well-managed 
when  the  external  force  resident  in  tlie  teacher,  or  any 
other  external  agent,  is  not  felt  as  a  factor  controlling  the 
energy  which  ought  to  move  freely  from  its  inherent 
source  in  the  pupil.  The  right  conduct  of  pupils  must 
seem  spontaneous  under  the  vital  energy  of  the  school, — 
a  free,  joyous  manifestation  of  the  learning  life  of  the 
pupil  within  the  organism.  Thus  we  have  clear  emphasis 
of  the  true  point  of  skill  in  school  management;  namely, 
in  securing  such  conditions,  and  making  instruction  so  vital 
that  external  applications  to  restore  order  are  rendered 
unnecessary.  Such  is  the  ideal  to  be  sought;  but  because 
of  weakness  in  both  teacher  and  pupil,  it  cannot  be 
realized  fully.  Hence  attention  must  still  be  given  to 
restoration  of  broken  unity;  wliich,  too,  out  of  relation 
to  school  management  as  a  whole,  may  be  reduced  to  the 
same  laws  of  the  beautiful.  And  the  foregoing  discussion 
on  restoration  of  broken  unity  is  an  attempt  to  so  reduce 


THE   ORGANISM   EXIXUTING   THE   LAW.  183 

it,  in  the  principle  that  the  pupil  moves  to  self-rt  forma- 
tion, witli  the  teacher  seemingly  aside. 

Ethical  Tkainixc  within-  the  Organism. 

As  already  pointed  out,  the  organism  lias  an  incidental, 
special  value  in  ethical  training,  wliile  accomplishing  the 
work  for  which  it  is  directly  designed.  It  must  not  be 
inferred  from  this  that  the  organism  has  other  tlian  ethi- 
cal value.  Being  designed  to  stimulate  the  process  of 
growth  in  the  pu})il,  the  entire  work  of  the  sfliool  is 
ethical.  AMiile  its  direct  purpose  is  tliat  of  giving  instruc- 
tion, this  must  be  taken  to  include  not  only  intellectual 
activities,  but  emotional  and  volitional  experience  as  well. 
Wlien  a  school  is  properly  organized,  the  emotions  and  the 
will  are  as  systematically  exercised  as  the  intellect;  and 
this  not  by  separate  pur[)Oses  and  processes,  but  by  the 
organic  nature  of  the  teacliing  act.  The  term  instruction 
covers  the  systematic  exercise  of  all  the  powers ;  and  not  by 
different  methods,  for  by  virtue  of  the  unity  of  the  mind 
and  of  the  subject-matter,  all  activities  arc  but  jihases  of 
one  life  movement  for  which  the  school  is  organized; 
which  movement,  taken  as  a  whole,  being  by  tension 
between  the  lower  and  the  higlier  self,  is  ethical. 

Rut  the  organism  has  an  iidierent  secondary  ethical 
value  in  tlie  process  of  accomplishing  tlie  end  for  which 
it  is  primarily  designed.  Unlike  most  other  agencies,  the 
material  worked  upon  is  a  part  of  the  agency.  While 
being  taught  by  the  school,   thp  pupil  is  a   part  of  the 


184  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

school.  The  pu[)il  is  educated  through  his  environment; 
and  the  school  instituted  to  do  tliis  work  becomes  at  once 
an  immediate  and  influential  part  of  that  environment. 
So  that  while  tlie  school  is  organized  to  give  instruction 
in  the  broadest  sense,  it  is  no  sooner  put  in  operation  than 
there  appears  an  ethical  value  inherent  in  the  life  of  the 
organism  as  such.  According  to  the  superficial  view,  econ- 
omy requires  that  all  the  teacher's  effort  should  be  devoted 
to  instruction,  feeling  that  energy  expended  on  manage- 
ment, in  order  to  give  instruction,  is  wasted.  Better  consid- 
ered, school  management,  as  a  means  of  cultivating  ethical 
virtues,  is  worth  all  the  time  and  energy  it  costs.  The 
process  of  managing  must  be  grasped  with  that  of  instruc- 
tion into  a  total  process  of  reaching  the  final  end  in 
character,  and  must  not  be  slighted  by  the  feeling  that  it 
simply  conditions  instruction.  It  is  a  question  of  getting 
the  total  value  out  of  the  organism;  and  this  must  include 
the  ethical  training  involved  in  the  inner  working  of  the 
organism,  as  well  as  the  good  it  objectively  seeks. 

We  must  not  suppose,  however,  that  there  are  two  kinds 
of  management, — one  to  secure  instruction,  with  another 
to  secure  ethical  training.  Since  all  things  done  right  are 
in  fundamental  harmony,  what  is  best  for  instruction  is 
most  efficient  in  ethical  training.  This  harmony  of  ends 
at  once  appears  on  recalling  the  fact  that  the  school 
organization  is  based  in  the  unity  of  the  pupil's  present 
and  future  self,  and  that  instruction  is  also  based  in  the 
same  unity.  The  organism  through  instruction  brings  the 
pupil   into   unity  with  his   better   self;    and   the  pupil's 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTIXG  THE  LAW.     185 

experience  within  the  organism  as  such  —  liis  experience 
incident  to  school  organization  —  must  be  an  experience  of 
unity  with  his  better  self.  This  is  the  law  of  unity 
reappearing  in  a  new  form,  as :  — 

Harmony  of  Means  and  End.  —  There  must  be  no  con- 
flict bewecu  the  end  sought  by  instruction  tlirough  the 
organism,  and  the  result  of  experience  in  the  organism  as 
such.  The  organism  must  not  contradict  itself,  —  must  be 
in  unity  with  itself  in  all  its  influences  to  the  supreme  end 
sought.  The  purity  and  integrity  of  the  organism  must 
be  maintained  in  the  interest  of  Avholesome  school  experi- 
ence, as  against  any  undue  pressure  in  tlie  interest  of 
mere  instruction. 

Instruction  being  the  primary  purpose  of  the  organism, 
flagrant  violations  of  this  law  are  often  committed  under 
the  stress  of  making  instruction  effective,  especially  when 
the  true  spirit  of  instruction  is  wanting.  For  instance, 
to  force  to  the  highest  effort  in  learning,  appeal  is  quite 
generally  made  to  the  pressure  of  the  per  cent  sy.««tem. 
Admitting  for  the  moment  that  this  end  can  thus  be 
accomplished,  it  is  ol)vious  tliat  such  a  course  subverts 
the  ethical  life  of  the  pupil.  The  ultimate  law  of  ethics 
requires  that  self-activity  should  not  contradict  itself; 
should  not  play  false  with  itself;  that  positively  it  should 
be  consistent  with  itself.  When  some  artificial  stimulus 
is  substituted  for  the  natural  tension  of  thought  which 
the  subject,  if  properly  adjusted,  will -adequately  set  up, 
the  pupil  is  caused  to  practice  deceit  with  his  own  process 
of  thought.      Improper  relations  to  problems  of  thought 


186  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

are  just  as  immoral  as  improper  relations  to  one's  fellows, 
and  for  the  same  reason;  for  in  both  there  is  breach  of 
integrity  in  the  life  process.  When  a  pupil  works  for  per 
cents  he  is  working  for  selfish  ends,  and  not  for  a  dis- 
interested object  which  only  can  have  his  true  self  in  it. 
Just  in  proportion  as  a  pupil  becomes  self-conscious 
through  the  stimulus  of  per  cents  —  becomes  interested  in 
per  cents  instead  of  his  subject  —  to  that  extent  he  is  in  an 
immoral  state  of  mind. 

.The  use  of  such  means  necessarily  kills  the  desire  to 
know;  which  is  immoral  because  killing  the  soul  itself. 
When  a  teacher,  in  good  faith  that  the  natural  process  of 
learning  is  its  own  sufficient  reward,  begins  to  instruct 
pupils  who  have  been  under  the  artificial  stimulus  of  the 
per  cent  system,  he  finds  them  to  be  indifferent  to  legiti- 
mate appeals,  and  ready  to  affirm  that  school  life  is  not 
worth  living  without  the  usual  excitement  and  strife  for 
per  cents.  What  hope  for  such  pupils  after  the  days  of 
formal  instruction!  The  severest  criticism  that  can  be 
made  on  school  work  is  to  show  that  students  after  grad- 
uation have  not  a  burning  desire  to  pursue  a  systematic 
course  of  study  and  improvement.  The  use  of  false  in- 
centives is  not  the  only  reason  for  this ;  but  it  is  largely 
chargeable  to  formal  methods  of  instruction  which  neces- 
sitate artificial  incentives,  which  further  render  instruc- 
tion dead  and  formal.  By  this  process  the  pupil,  if  not 
becoming  positively  averse  to  study,  feels  satisfied  and 
self-sufficient ;  and  having  no  foreign  incentive  now  offered, 
be  is  under  no  compulsion  to  further  labor.    If  study  means 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.     187 

a  contest  witli  ponderable,  percentable  packages  of  knowl- 
edge, how  play  the  game  when  there  is  no  one  to  estimate 
and  umpire?  If  the  school  is  to  determine  to  a  future 
life  of  study,  the  motives  appealed  to  and  cultivated  in 
school  must  be  the  same  as  those  employed  in  the  natural, 
healthful  course  of  life  out  of  school. 

And,  furthermore,  instruction,  while  supposed  to  require 
the  percenting  system,  prohibits  the  use  of  that  system  as 
positively  as  does  the  ethical  law  inherent  in  the  organism. 
The  intrusion  of  a  foreign  element  between  the  pupil  and 
the  object  of  his  thought  not  only  perverts  his  ethical 
relation  to  the  subject  he  studies,  but  is  an  outrage  on  the 
learning  process  itself.  The  mind  learns  by  direct  tension 
with  the  subject,  and  insulating  non-conductors  are  fatal 
to  the  process.  The  use  of  per  cents  as  a  means  of  instruc- 
tion shows  either  that  the  teacher  has  no  faith  in  the 
passion  of  the  mind  for  knowledge,  and  in  the  power  of 
the  subject  to  gratify  such  passion;  or  it  is  a  confession  of 
lack  of  skill  in  so  adjusting  one  to  the  other  as  to  utilize 
the  natural  and  most  powerful  motive  in  study.  AVhen 
teaching  .is  poorest,  the  need  for  per  cents  is  felt  to  be 
greatest,  and  the  most  thoroughly  and  damagingly  are 
they  used.  It  is  not  at  all  strange  that,  in  the  childhood 
of  the  profession,  before  the  teacher  had  found  the  centre 
of  his  sphere  in  the  unity  of  pupil  and  subject-matter, 
he  should  resort  to  mechanical  leverage  to  force  the  in- 
struction which  his  crude  art  could  not  otherwise  secure. 
Nothing  to  this  end  has  seemed  so  practical  and  powerful 
as  the  per  cent  system ;  and  so  universally  and  thoroughly 


188  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

lias  it  been  used,  that  it  has  assumed  tlie  role  of  a  legiti- 
mate and  necessary  function.  Let  those  who  think  that 
pupils  must  have  other  motives  to  study  than  the  desire 
to  learn,  observe  the  zest  with  which  the  unperverted 
and  wisely  guided  kindergarten  or  primary  pupil  labors. 
Observa.tion  proves  that  the  argument  for  tlie  use  of  arti- 
ficial incentives  has  no  force  except  in  case  of  perverted 
appetite  for  knowledge;  and  certainly  one  should  not  wish 
to  argue  for  the  continuance  of  the  system  which  so 
perverted  the  appetite  as  to  make  the  system  necessary. 
Even  after  suffering  long  abuse  of  the  system,  let  the 
mind  of  the  pupil  be  brought  into  living  touch  with  the 
thing  he  studies,  and  there  is  instant  regeneration,  and 
bounding  forth  with  alacrity  to  further  explorations.  No, 
it  is  faith  in  the  exhilarating  touch  of  the  mind  with 
living  truth  that  saves  both  teacher  and  pupil  from  the 
quackery  of  superficial  and  temporizing  devices  as  against 
natural  and  constitutional  procedure. 

The  foregoing  criticism  does  not  apply  to  the  use  of 
per  cent  records  for  the  convenience  of  teachers ;  iyet  it 
must  be  remembered  that  nothing  lies  like  figures  when 
used  to  indicate  mental  attainments.  Especially  so  when 
per  cents  are  used  as  motives  to  study,  and  become  an  object 
of  attainment  by  the  teacher.  The  work  thus  assumes  a 
formal  character,  and  the  higher  the  per  cent  the  more 
questionable  the  qualification.  The  more  vigorous,  origi- 
nal, and  inquisitive  the  mind,  the  less  capable  and  willing 
is  it  to  do  routine,  percentable  work.  A  good  class  will 
make    a   poor    record    when    examined   by   a   mechanical 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.     189 

routine  teacher;  while  under  the  same  conditions  a  poor 
class  will  make  a  good  record.  Class-honor  men  are  not 
the  men  who  take  the  lionors  in  tlie  real  conflict  of  life. 
It  is  not  the  highest  order  of  talent  that  consents  to  work 
for  artificial  ends  by  percentable  products,  nor  sucli  talent 
as  most  likely  to  succeed  under  such  conditions.  For  this 
reason  the  comparative  attainment  of  jjujiils,  either  in  the 
same  class  or  in  different  schools,  cannot  be  ascertained 
by  a  study  of  per  cent  records.  Before  per  cents  can  reveal 
tlic  truth,  it  nuist  be  known  how  jjupils  liavc  been  taught, 
the  kind  of  (questions  by  which  they  have  been  tested,  and 
the  kind  of  teacher  wlio  makes  the  estimate,  lint  let  the 
teacher  make  the  most  of  this  unreliable  arithmetic,  so 
tliat  it  never  be  made  tlie  motive  to  study. 

And  in  the  same  way  examinations  have  their  use  and 
abuse.  They  may  perhaps  be  properly  used  to  ascertain 
the  condition  of  a  pupil's  mind  as  a  basis  of  instruction, 
but  never  as  an  impending  danger  to  tlie  caiudcss  and  easy- 
going pupil.  Yet  the  need  of  the  examination  as  a  test  of 
knowledge  is  greatly  overestimated.  It  is  strange  if  the 
teacher  who  has  taught  the  class  does  not.  in  so  doing, 
learn  their  mental  condition.  Certainly  tlie  written  recita- 
tion and  the  preparation  of  pa]iers  out  of  recitation  time 
are  an  exact,  searching,  and  sufficient  test;  all  of  which  the 
natural  course  of  instruction  requires.  If  it  be  desirable 
to  call  this  an  examination,  then  let  it  be  admitted  that 
examinations  arc  proper  for  purposes  of  instruction. 
After  a  class  is  well  taught  under  normal  conditions,  it 
would  be  a  serious  confession  on  the  part  of  the  teacher 


100  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

to  claim  that  an  examinatifju  is  needed  to  ascertain  the 
condition  of  pupils'  minds  touching  tlie  subject  taught. 

It  seems  that  college  authorities  have  found  no  other 
solution  of  the  distressing  examination  problem  than  that 
of  surveillance  or  student-honor,  as  appears  from  an  article 
by  Professor  Stevens  in  the  February  "  Forum "  of  '95. 
It  seems  not  to  have  occurred  to  them  that  the  examina- 
tion might  formally  disappear  in  the  i-egular  and  matter- 
of-course  daily  work,  and  thus  avoid  its  objectionable 
feature.  When  an  examination  has  any  other  than  an  educa- 
tive value,  which  reduces  it  to  regular  class  work,  it  is  the 
subtlest  irony  to  speak  of  putting  pupils  on  their  honor; 
the  fact  of  the  examination  is  the  challenge  of  honor,  and 
is  only  a  more  refined  surveillance,  while  purporting  to  be 
its  opposite.  The  entrance  examination  might  seem  to  be 
an  exception  to  all  this,  since  there  has  been  no  recitation 
to  test  qualification.  But  if  the  professor  should  state 
to  the  student  Avhat  qualifications  are  necessary  for  suc- 
cessful work  in  the  department,  the  rest  may  be  left 
with  the  student;  for  he  undertakes  the  work  at  his  own 
peril,  under  the  coming  and  all-sufficient  test  of  ability  to 
carry  the  class  work.  Students  who  would  desire  to  de- 
ceive in  this  matter  are  too  rare  to  justify  imposing  rules 
on  the  mass,  and  such  are  sure  to  be  caught  in  due  course 
of  instruction. 

But  suppose  examinations  are  needed:  they  cannot  be 
relied  on  as  anything  more  than  a  very  inaccurate  and 
partial  test.  This  fact  is  well  emphasized  by  Fitch. 
"Nevertheless  we  have  to  postulate  here  that  there  are 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  191 

certain  very  valuable  qualities  which  are  not  revealed  in 
a  written  examination,  and  which  the  habit  of  exclusively 
relying  on  sucli  examination  does  not  encourage.  Except 
in  so  far  as  diligcnf-e  and  obedience  are  concerned,  exami 
nations  do  but  little  to  test  moral  qualities,  or  active 
power.  They  do  not  tell  yon  whether  the  action  of  the 
mind  has  been  rapid  or  sluggish,  nor  how  far  the  pupil 
has  been  influenced  by  a  sense  of  duty  or  by  strong 
interest  in  his  work.  Still  less  do  they  help  to  gauge 
those  attributes  on  wliieh  success  and  honor  in  life  so 
much  depend,  —  sympathy  with  human  beings,  deference 
for  superiors,  the  power  of  working  with  and  influencing 
others,  address,  flexibility,  manner.  Let  us  once  for  all 
acknowledge  that  for  cither  educiitioiuil  purposes,  or  for 
testing  or  selection,  with  a  view  to  the  requirements  of  a 
university  or  of  the  public  service,  the  best  examinations 
do  not  test  the  whole  man,  but  leave  some  important  ele- 
ment of  character  to  be  ascertained  by  other  means;  and  we 
have  still  to  ask,  within  what  limits  are  examinations  valu- 
able, and  how  we  can  get  the  maximum  of  good  out  of  them." 
Be  this  as  it  may,  there  can  l)c  no  question  of  the  evil 
effects  of  the  examination  system  as  a  means  of  enforcing 
industry  and  diligent  perseverance  in  well-doing.  The 
method  of  examination  by  which  the  student  is  induced 
to  risk  all  on  the  last  fearful  moment,  is  vicious  and  demor- 
alizing in  the  extreme;  and  for  such  a  test  there  can  be 
no  apology,  except  that  by  a  kind  of  military  enforcement 
of  work,  study  can  be  secured  which  clumsy  teaching  fails 
to  realize.      Some  abnormal  condition  of  things,  such  as 


192  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

large,  diverse  membership  of  classes,  may  suggest  the 
need  of  testing  by  formal  examinations  j  but  certainly  in 
a  well-ordered  system  no  such  necessity  can  arise.  Then 
shall  we  have  examinations?  Yes,  continually.  How? 
As  a  regular  organic  part  of  the  instruction,  both  oral  and 
written;  and  as  a  matter  of  course,  pupils  being  uncon- 
scious that  anything  new  or  unusual  is  happening.  Cer- 
tainly never  with  the  idea  of  external  pressure  to  study, 
entailing  fear,  dread,  and  nervous  strain,  —  the  very  ele- 
ments which  have  perpetuated  the  system.  The  matter 
of  breaking  health  through  nervous  strain  is  not  an  insig- 
nificant part  of  the  account ;  but  still  worse  is  the  moral 
strain,  often  too  great  to  be  borne.  How  frequently  in 
college  work,  where  there  is  the  most  diligent  detective 
practice  on  the  part  of  the  professor,  do  we  hear  the 
student  chuckle  at  his  exultant  story  of  superior  general- 
ship in  the  war  where  cheating  and  lying  are  fair ! 

But  all  this  is  gradually  passing,  and  the  danger  lies 
in  a  more  subtle  form  of  evil.  This  is  the  same  as  that 
pointed  out  in  speaking  of  per  cents,  —  namely,  the  dis- 
turbance of  the  natural  and  healthful  tension  of  the  mind 
with  the  world  of  life  and  thought  which  it  is  to  master. 
It  is  the  intrusion  of  foreign  elements  between  the  pupil's 
present  real  self  and  his  future  ideal  self,  as  found  in  the 
world  he  is  to  study.  If  the  elements  of  anxiety,  fear, 
the  venturing  of  chances,  and  the  temptation  to  deception 
could  be  eliminated,  and  one  still  think  of  the  examination 
as  a  motive,  it  could  not  be  used  without  turning  the  pupil 
back  upon  himself;   whereas  the  motive  and  the  method 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.     193 

of  tlie  pupil's  work  must  bring  self- forgetful  activity  on 
the  subject  for  consideration.  Self-realization  is  by  the 
process  of  self-sacrifice.  Self-activity  is  the  striving  to 
be  the  otlier  self,  which  is  the  thought  and  spirit  of  the 
world  objective  to  the  self.  Tliis  is  the  organic  unity  of 
consciousness  which  must  be  kept  inviolate.  Self-activity 
must  not  be  taught  to  i>ractice  deceit;  the  object  acted  ou 
must  be  the  motive  iu  the  action.  The  teacher  cannot  use 
the  examination  as  a  motive  to  study  without  breaking 
faith  with  the  mind's  craving  for  unity  with  the  world 
about  it;  nor  without  weakening  the  tension  for  that 
unity.  The  hungering  and  thirsting  of  the  soul  for  the 
righteous  spirit  of  the  world  is  the  supreme  ethical  virtue; 
and  it  is  this  desire  in  some  form  to  which  every  teaching 
act  must  appeal  for  its  motive.  To  make  any  other  apjieal 
is  a  perversion  of  the  ethical  relation  of  the  pupil  to  the 
world  in  which  he  lives. 

All  other  artificial  stimuUmts  are  to  be  disposed  of  by 
the  same  argument  as  that  used  against  per  cents  and 
examinations.  When  a  prize  is  offered  the  assumption  is 
that  the  subject  of  stud}-  has  not  in  itself  sufficient  induce- 
ment to  its  study;  or  that  the  teacher  lacks  skill  iu  bring- 
ing the  subject  into  stimulating  touch  with  the  mind  of 
the  learner.  Properly  treated,  the  subject  is  its  own 
prize;  and  to  substitute  any  other  is  a  subversion  of  the 
true  method  and  motive  iu  Icariiiiig.  Tin'  prizes  so  gener- 
ously offered  to  college  students  by  well-meaning  people, 
and  distributed  from  the  platform  at  commencements,  are 
antagonistic  to  the  spirit  of  true  education.    It  cultivates  a 


194  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

longing  and  vain  striving  for  ignoble  things ;  and  this  in 
an  institution  pledged  to  liberal  culture  and  the  higher  life 
of  thought  and  sentiment.  Emulation,  a  much-praised 
motive  to  study,  is  likewise  prohibited  both  on  ethical 
grounds  and  by  the  true  method  of  learning.  The  pupil 
has  only  so  much  of  total  energy  to  expend  on  the  sub- 
ject ;  and  why  should  some  other  fellow  be  thrust  in  the 
way  to  consume  a  part  of  that  energy  ?  The  pupil  ha.s 
all  he  can  do  to  rise  above  himself ;  and  the  standard  of  his 
achievement  should  not  be  located  in  another  for  the  sake 
of  excelling  the  other.  He  certainly  should  make  a 
legitimate  use  of  the  other  as  a  standard  for  himself;  but 
rivalry,  which  has  in  it  the  desire  to  excel  another  for  the 
sake  of  excelling  him,  needs  to  be  refined  out  of  the  pupil 
rather  than  cultivated  in  him.  Self-emulation  is  the  only 
worthy  emulation.     Any  other  cultivates 

'*  The  low  desii'e,  the  base  design, 
That  makes  another's  virtues  less;** 
and  also 

"  The  strife  for  triumph  more  than  truth." 

The  use  of  such  a  motive  may  secure,  through  strife  and 
contentions,  a  great  display  of  animation  and  effort;  but 
these  are  only  feverish,  fitful  spasms  from  a  disorder  in 
the  school  organism,  and  not  to  be  taken  for  genuine  zeal 
and  aspiration. 

Thus  always  the  ethical  character  of  the  organism  is 
tested  in  the  sitpport  given  to  the  unity  of  the  pupil  with 
himself  in  the  subject  he  studies.  It  must  contain  no 
element  which  stands  counter  to  self-realization.     What- 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  195 

ever  be  the  pressure  to  make  instruction  effective,  the 
organism  must  preserve  its  integrity,  so  as  to  secure 
wholesome  living  within  it  while  the  end  of  instruction  is 
being  sought.  It  permits  no  appeal  to  low  desires  and 
base  motives;  allows  no  insult  to  the  pupil's  rational 
desire  for  knowledge,  nor  to  the  world  of  life  and  reason 
which  are  sufficient  to  gratify  that  desire.  In  order  to  the 
growth  and  health  of  the  body,  the  appropriate  activities 
are  piompted  by  the  unerring  desire  for  food,  air,  warmth, 
light,  and  action.  Is  it  not  fair  to  assume  that  the  growth 
of  the  mind  has  been  equally  well  insured  by  some  impulse 
which  prompts  to  acts  appropriate  to  its  growth?  The 
abiding  passion  of  the  soul  is  for  knowledge,  and  all  the 
teacher  can  properly  do  is  to  take  this  fact  fairly  and  at 
its  worth.  This  passion  he  may  stimulate,  make  definite, 
and  attach  to  the  proper  objects ;  but  he  cannot  introduce 
a  substitute  without  weakening  the  life-giving  connection 
between  the  pupil  learning  and  the  object  being  learned. 
This  duty  of  appeal  to  proper  motives  is  well  enforced  by 
Thomas  Davidson  in  the  "Forum,'"  on  '"The  Ideal  Educa- 
tion of  an  American  Boy." 

"In  all  his  teachings,  moreover,  he  [the  tutor]  will  take 
the  utmost  care  never  to  let  his  pupils  think  that  they 
are  studying  merely  in  order  to  pass  an  examination,  but 
always  to  make  them  feel  that  the  only  end  of  study  is 
complete  autonomous  manhood,  lie  will  do  his  best  to 
show  them  how,  and  in  what  degree,  each  study  contrib- 
utes to  this  end,  so  that  they  may  never  feel,  as  so  many 
boys  do  at  present,  that  they  are  studying  merely  because 


196  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

some  one  else  wishes  them  to  do  so,  and  consequently,  that 
their  work  is  a  slavish,  unprofitable  task.  .  A  boy  who 
does  not  feel  that  every  hour  he  spends  in  study  is  spent 
for  the  sake  of  the  highest  end  he  knows  and  desires,  is  in 
an  immoral  frame  of  mind,  and  by  no  means  on  the  way 
toward  moral  autonomy.  The  greatest  triumph  as  a  tutor 
is  to  make  his  pupils  feel  that  what  he  requires  of  them  is 
the  very  best  thing  they  could  be  doing.  If  he  fails  in 
this,  he  has  virtually  failed  altogther;  for  every  hour  that 
a  self-conscious  being  spends  without  feeling  that  it  is 
bringing  him  nearer  to  the  goal  of  his  aspirations  is  an 
hour  slavishly  and  unrighteously  wasted." 

Influence  of  Social  Combination.  —  Having  guarded  the 
purity  and  integrity  of  the  organism  by  rejecting  all 
harmful  agencies,  it  is  free  to  enter  into  positive  ethical 
training.  School  life  is  the  transition  from  the  family  to 
the  larger  complex  social  life  of  the  world.  In  the  pupil's 
little  school  world  he  is  trained  to  the  forms  and  habits  of 
life  which  fit  him  for  the  larger  social  world  of  which  he 
must  soon  be  a  member. 

Society  is  infinitely  complex,  yet  a  closely  integrated 
whole;  and  the  fundamental  law  of  social  life  requires  that 
the  individual  conduct  himself  so  as  to  preserve  intact  the 
social  whole :  not  in  a  merely  negative  sense,  but  in  that 
of  active  co-operation  to  worthy  achievements  of  the  race. 
The  great  obstacle  to  proper  social  conduct  is  the  inability 
of  the  individual  to  grasp  adequately  the  bewildering 
complexity  of  society  into  a  closely  integrated  system  of 
human  effort  for  personal  welfare.      Concrete  experience 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  197 

in  family  life,  tlie  most  elementary  social  unit,  develops 
in  the  child  the  germ  of  the  organic  conception,  which  is 
to  be  finally  expanded,  by  the  school  and  other  agencies, 
into  a  comprehension  of  the  complex  life  of  the  social 
whole.  In  school,  wliicli  carries  over  into  itself  much  of 
the  family  spirit,  tliis  germ  of  social  conception  becomes 
definite  and  complex  tlirough  the  more  varied  and  exacting 
requirements  of  school  life.  The  school,  as  tlie  pu[iil 
meets  it,  is  a  concrete,  comprehensible  social  world,  — 
an  object  both  to  be  observed  by  him  and  of  wliicli  he  is 
a  living  part;  and,  if  i)r()perly  managed,  becomes  a  most 
potent  influence  in  forming  proper  habits  and  sentiments 
of  social  life. 

Whatever  training  the  school  gives  preparatory  to  social 
life,  is  based  on  the  fact  that  each  pupil  pursues  his  work 
in  association  with  others.  This  fact  is  the  basis  for  a 
criticism  frequently  made  against  public  scliool  education, 
—  namely,  that  of  evil  associations  and  corrupting  intiu- 
ences  of  vicious  pupils.  But  this  has  the  counter-balan- 
cing benefit  of  bringing  the  evil  under  the  infiuence  of  the 
good;  and  from  the  standpoint  of  the  whole  tlie  standard 
of  virtue  may  not  be  lowered,  leaving  ground  for  com- 
])laint  only  witli  those  jiurents  wliose  children  are,  or  are 
thought  to  be,  above  the  average.  However  this  may  be, 
the  school  society,  under  proper  regulations,  is  certainly 
better  than  what  the  child  will  probably  be  thrown  into 
as  he  approaches  maturity.  With  a  well-regulated  system, 
and  proper  vigilance  on  the  part  of  the  teacher,  the  social 
tone  of   the   school  may  be  made  elevating  even  to  the 


198  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

average  pupil.  ]>eing  alainied  at  certain  specitic  forms 
of  contagious  vice,  we  are  too  prone  to  leave  out  of  the 
account  contagious  forms  of  virtue,  as  well  as  the  general 
toning  influences  of  a  well-ordered  school.  At  any  rate 
the  school  is  not  at  fault,  for  the  life  of  the  school  as  a 
whole  is  as  good  as  the  material  sent  to  it,  and  out  of 
which  it  is  made.  All  that  need  be  urged  upon  the  school 
as  an  institution  is  that  it  be  so  thoroughly  organized  and 
managed  to  the  end  of  higher  life  and  conduct,  as  to  be 
above  the  general  standard  of  social  life,  in  which  the 
pupil,  while  out  of  school,  would  probably  be  moving. 

People  must  come  in  touch;  it  is  impossible  to  save  by 
secluding  and  stowing  away  in  pure  corners  of  the  earth. 
To  hide  from  the  world  till  evil  disaj)pears  is  a  poor  way 
to  attain  to  the  crowning  glory  of  virtue,  —  the  overcom- 
ing of  evil.  Holiness  is  not  the  absence  of  evil,  but  the 
victory  over  it.  A  school  may  be  so  managed  as  to 
corrupt  morals  and  manners,  and  to  foster  a  sense  of  dis- 
order, injustice,  and  anarchy;  but  this  only  suggests  a 
potency  for  good  in  the  opposite  direction,  both  of  which 
facts  make  doubly  strong  the  necessity  for  the  teacher 
keeping  clearly  in  mind  the  leading  social  virtues  which 
a  well-managed  school  cultivates. 

The  first  of  these  virtues,  which  arises  from  the  mere 
fact  of  school  association,  is  that  of  :  — 

Politeness.  —  Society ,  in  its  popular  sense ,  is  only  a 
general  expression  for  the  recognized  kinship  and  com- 
munity of  life  among  individuals.  In  some  degree  the 
world  as  a  whole  is  a  sociable  world;  for  man  recognizes 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.     199 

man  in  every  form  of  human  life,  and  expresses  the  recog- 
nition in  customary  social  forms.  In  no  situation  in  life 
is  man  relieved  from  acknowledging  that  every  other  **  is 
a  man  for  a'  that."  Thus  society,  in  its  most  intangible 
unity,  is  bound  together  by  the  universal  sentiment  of 
community  of  life  in  the  race. 

This  mere  feeling  of  unity  finds  expression  in  the  social 
amenities  and  courtesies  of  life.  Such  recognition,  not 
the  outer  form  but  the  inner  spirit,  is  true  politeness. 
This  is  a  chief  social  trait,  because  it  is  that  quality  of 
one's  actions  which  acknowledges  the  ideal,  potential 
self  in  another;  and  from  which  arises  the  unity  of  the 
social  whole.  Impoliteness  is  tlie  treating  and  greeting 
of  another  by  reference  to  his  shortcomings;  and  the  true 
test  of  politeness  is  found  in  the  adjustment  of  actions  to 
the  ideal  and  potential  when  these  are  obscured  by  vice 
and  degradation.  It  is  easy  enough  to  be  polite  to 
kings  and  queens,  —  to  real  kings  and  queens  in  spiritual 
virtues;  but  true  politeness  discerns  the  king  and  queen 
in  every  one,  — even  in  the  loathsome  leper  begging  before 
the  castle  gate  of  a  knight-errant. 

There  is  a  vast  difference  between  the  true  recognition 
of  the  ideal  worth  of  another  as  man,  and  the  mere  formal 
and  conventional  use  of  politeness;  yet  the  two  are  one  in 
being  based  on  the  acceptance  of  the  brotherhood  of  man. 
In  any  form,  politeness  is  a  means  of  maintaining  social 
unity.  Inuigine  each  speaking  and  acting  with  reference 
to  the  real  character  of  liis  associates,  and  at  once  society  is 
dissolved  into  atoms  —  perhaps  with  bruises  and  bloodshed. 


200  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

To  test  one's  act  as  to  politeness,  it  need  only  be  asked 
whether  it  break  tlie  unity  of  good  feeling  binding  to- 
gether the  social  whole. 

For  instance,  if  one  should  meet  an  enemy  in  a  social 
gathering,  it  would  be  impolite  to  treat  hinV  there  as  an 
enemy,  because  such  conduct  would  break  the  unity  and 
check  the  flow  of  social  life.  It  is  impolite  to  read  a 
newspaper  in  church  while  the  pastor  is  preaching, 
because  he  is  thus  treated  as  an  unworthy  pastor,  and  the 
congregational  unity  disturbed. 

Politeness  in  school  is  only  a  phase  of  the  law  of 
organic  unity  in  the  school.  Pupils  must  meet  on  a 
common  })lane,  where  each  is  forced  to  recognize  the  equal 
worth  of  others,  in  whatever  uninviting  guise  it  may 
appear.  A  dignified  and  well-toned  system  of  manage- 
ment necessarily  maintains  strict  practice  of  polite  conduct 
as  an  indispensable  means  to  the  integrity  of  the  organism. 
Thus  the  teacher  does  not  need  to  turn  aside  to  enforce 
polite  conduct,  but  secures  such  conduct  in  dae  course  of 
management  itself.  Whatever  the  teacher  may  do  by  way 
of  instruction  in  the  theory  and  practice  of  politeness 
should  be  done ;  but  the  practice  of  politeness  is  inherent 
in  the  organism  itself.  And  whatever  definite  instruction 
may  be  desired  on  the  subject,  no  better  ojiportunity  can 
be  found  than  that  furnished  by  the  concrete  situations  of 
school  life.  As  the  pupil  in  all  cases  of  discipline  must 
reason  out  how  certain  acts  destroy  the  school,  so  here  he 
should  see  specifically  how  he  disorganizes  the  school  by 
impolite  conduct.     And  then  such  conduct  has  still  greater 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE    LAW.  201 

claims  upon  the  individual  on  his  own  account;  which 
should  become  so  clear  to  him  as  to  appeal  to  his  sense  of 
ideal  worth ,  as  well  as  to  his  respect  for  the  ideal  worth 
of  another,  and  the  desire  for  the  welfare  of  the  school  as 
a  whole.  The  requirement  of  politeness  put  upon  the 
teacher  in  maintaining  unity  in  the  class  reciting  has 
already  been  indicated.  This  may  now  be  taken  as  a 
general  principle  of  securing  unity  in  any  form  whatever. 
By  the  nature  of  the  teacher's  relation  to  his  pupil,  he 
must  address  himself  to  the  ideal  in  the  pupil.  When  the 
teacher,  in  an  angry  moment,  berates  the  pupil  for  his 
shortcomings,  he  subverts  the  very  foundations  of  the 
school.  The  weakness  of  a  pupil  can  never  be  made  the 
means  of  attack  without  risking  disorganization.  At  all 
times  the  teacher  must  see  tlie  lady  or  the  gentleman  in 
his  pupil,  even  when  brought  to  the  necessit}-  of  dealing 
sternly  with  misdemeanors.  The  seliool  is  still  a  phase 
of  polite  society,  and  the  teacher  must  never  violate  social 
proprieties  because  occupying  a  position  of  authority. 
However  wayward  a  pupil  may  be,  he  must  receive  the 
same  social  attention  and  courtesies  as  a  perfect  lady  or 
gentleman.  Teachers,  because  they  have  not  realized  ideal 
politeness,  may  have  to  make  a  little  effort  to  treat  the 
uncouth  and  saucy  boy  with  the  same  attention  and 
courtesy  as  the  well-bred  and  attractive  one;  l)ut  the  law 
of  unity  permits  nothing  less;  and  in  this  the  teacher 
finds,  as  does  the  pupil,  rugged  discipline  in  polite 
conduct. 

On   the  general  basis  of  sociable    relations,  the  school 


202  SCHOOL  management. 

and  society  pass  into  more  definite  organic  character  by 
the  parts  lusuming  orderly  arrangement  with  reference  to 
work  to  be  accomplished.  This  new  fact  requires  of  the 
social  unit  the  ethical  sense  and  habit  of :  — 

Order. — The  first  condition  to  active  co-operation  of 
the  parts  of  a  mechanism  or  organism  is  that  the  parts  be 
orderly  disposed  with  reference  to  each  other,  —  that  each 
be  in  its  proper  place  at  the  proper  time.  The  essential 
element  in  order  is  that  of  punctuality,  —  the  observance 
of  time  and  place  conditions  of  co-operation.  The  organ 
must  be  where  it  is  needed  when  it  is  needed,  or  it  is  use- 
less ;  therefore ,  disorder  is  disorganization. 

The  law  of  order  involves  the  law  of  silence;  for  the 
individual  must  not  simply  be  in  body  at  the  right  time 
in  the  right  place,  but  must  be  there  in  spirit  also.  His 
mind  must  be  abstracted  from  everything  but  the  work  in 
hand;  and  this  is  the  inward  silence  which  produces  the 
outward  silence.  Order  requires  attention  to  a  given 
matter  at  the  right  time  and  place.  A  pupil  is  in  order 
when  his  mind  is  at  the  point  of  doing  the  thing  next  to 
be  done. 

The  school  organism  cannot  move  forward  without  plac 
ing  the  pupil  under  the  strict  requirement  of  order;  hence, 
it  again  appears  that  the  teacher  need  not  turn  aside  to 
cultivate  the  ethical  virtue  in  question,  but  must  simply 
enforce  as  usual  the  law  of  unity  inherent  in  the  organism. 
Thus  may  be  cultivated  the  habit  of  order  and  the  feeling 
of  obligation  to  the  law,  which  are  necessary  to  maintain 
unity   in   any  phase   of   social   organization.      Social   co- 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW.  203 

operation  is  impossible  in  any  form  without  obedience  to 
the  law  of  order;  and  as  civilization  advances,  and  social 
phenomena  become  more  complex,  the  more  exacting  is 
the  requirement  of  the  law.  A  railroad  system  would  be 
instantly  paralyzed  by  a  failure  of  operatives  to  conform 
to  the  schedule;  and  the  business  of  the  whole  country 
would  be  destroyed  by  absolute  uncertainty  as  to  the  time 
and  place  of  transactions.  And  such  is  the  general  neces- 
sity for  order  running  through  every  p'Kase  of  organic  life; 
and  also  manifested  with  such  mathematical  precision  in 
the  world  of  physical  law.  The  parts  of  the  solar  system 
are  always  in  place  and  at  their  appointed  task.  And  so 
should  it  be  with  every  social  organ;  but  such  organs 
work  by  capricious  will  instead  of  by  mathematical  law, 
and  must  be  trained  to  observe  the  first  law  of  heaven. 
With  such  necessity  of  the  moral  virtue  of  order,  and  with 
such  definite  requirements  made  by  the  law  of  tlie  school 
on  that  virtue,  the  school  should  be  "managed  with  the 
conscious  purpose  of  forming  habits  of  order,  and  of  culti- 
vating a  quick  sense  of  obligation  to  the  requirements  of 
the  law. 

The  next  social  virtue  arising  after  order,  and  which  the 
school  by  its  inherent  structure  cultivates,  is  that  of:  — 

Truthfulness.  — Truthfulness  is  essential  not  only  to  the 
integrity  —  the  unbrokenness  —  of  the  individual,  but  to 
the  integrity  of  an  institution.  The  co-operative  unity  of 
the  parts  already  orderly  arranged  is  maintained  through 
some  form  of  cnnnuunioatiiig  medium.  Now  truthfulness, 
including  all  forms  of   fair   and  honest  dealing,  is  that 


204  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

(luality  in  the  communicating  medium  by  which  each 
knows  the  real  intent  of  the  other.  Trutli fulness  is  the 
transparency  of  the  communicating  medium.  If  this 
medium  diffuses  or  refracts  the  real  intention  of  the 
communicator,  the  recipient  is  thrown  off  the  track,  and 
his  effort  to  join  in  the  thought  and  work  of  the  other 
defeated.  Truthfulness  in  word  or  act  brings  two  or  more 
minds  into  unity;  but  lying  and  deceit  sunder  yet  more 
widely,  while  pretending  the  opposite.  Thus  unity  of 
thought  and  harmony  of  action  rest,  after  order,  on  the 
transparency  of  the  social  medium  of  communication. 
Lying  not  only  antagonizes  truth,  but  cannot  harmonize 
with  itself;  hence  liars  must  have  good  memories.  Any 
truth  fits  every  other;  while  any  lie  fits  no  other,  else  it 
would  be  true  to  the  lie  it  fits.  Thus  lying  is  the  absolute 
destruction  of  organic  unity. 

Hence,  truthfulness  in  school,  especially  between  teacher 
and  pupils,  is  an  absolute  requirement  of  the  law  of  unity 
in  school  management.  For  instance,  if  the  pupil  in  any 
way  deceive  the  teacher  as  to  what  he  knows  about  the 
subject  of  instruction,  he  so  far  dissolves  organization 
Avith  the  teacher;  and  should  the  teacher  cause  the  pupil 
to  practice  self-deception  as  to  his  real  mental  condition, 
the  result  is  the  same,  with  change  of  criminals.  The 
true  attitude  of  the  pupil  will  reveal  his  whole  mind  to 
the  teacher,  especially  his  weakness,  so  that  the  teacher 
may  render  the  needed  assistance.  But  the  teacher 
generally  so  puts  the  pressure  on  the  student  by  threats, 
examinations,  marks,  prizes,  and  honors,  that  he  is  not 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THE   LAW.  205 

only  tempted  to  conceal  his  weakness,  but  to  make  a  false 
show  of  knowledge.  This  is  another  root  of  the  evil  dis- 
cussed under  false  incentives,  which  ajjpears  now  as  a 
thoroughly  disorganizing  element  at  the  vital  centre  of  the 
school,  —  unity  of  teacher  and  pupil.  This  suggests  the 
care  the  teacher  should  exercise  in  keeping  the  mind  of 
the  pupil  open  as  to  its  vital  needs,  both  in  order  to  secure 
the  focal  unity  of  the  school  and  to  avoid  the  cultivation 
of  a  most  subtle  form  of  deception,  blighting  to  every 
phase  of  social  life.  But  in  every  phase  of  school  experi- 
ence the  teacher  must  bring  the  pupil  to  the  practice  of 
truthfulness;  and  he  will  not  lack  for  opportunity  to  lead 
the  pupil  to  discover  the  disorganizing  character  of  decep- 
tion and  falsehood.  The  school  is  inherently  true  and 
honest;  and  the  cultivation  of  these  virtues  requires  only 
the  rigid  enforcement  of  its  fundamental  law. 

The  individuals  of  society,  bound  togetlier  by  tlie  mere 
feeling  of  community  of  life,  and  having  assumed  definite 
and  orderly  arrangement  with  reference  to  each  other  in 
the  work  to  be  done;  and  further,  given  to  trutlifulness  in 
communication,  the  welfare  of  the  school  and  of  society 
requires  yet  another  attribute,  that  of:  — 

Industry. — The  individual,  when  organized  into  a  sys- 
tem of  work,  must  give  steady  attention  to  that  work. 
The  wlieels  of  a  machine  cannot  stop  without  stopping  the 
machine;  idleness  is  a  social  disorganizer,  and  not  only 
because  of  the  absence  of  labor,  but  because  the  dead, 
disjointed  material  becomes  a  burden  to  the  social  body. 
Whether  viewed  from  the  individual  or  social  standpoint, 


206  SCHOOL   MANAGEMENT. 

idleness  is  immoral,  —  from  the  individual  standpoint, 
because  activity  is  the  law  of  his  being;  from  the  social, 
because  the  whole  is  disintegrated  when  the  activity  of 
its  members  ceases.  Industry,  from  the  social  point  of 
view,  is  the  tension  of  the  activity  of  the  individual  with 
the  movement  of  the  whole.  Industry  is  the  very  life  and 
movement  of  any  social  organization;  hence,  idleness  on 
the  part  of  the  teacher  or  pupils  destroys  the  school  to 
the  extent  of  the  idleness;  and  complete  idleness  is  com- 
plete destruction.  It  is  needless  to  urge  that  a  school 
thoroughly  organized  and  managed,  with  its  regular,  exact, 
and  punctual  requirement  in  performance  of  duty,  is  a 
most  powerful  means  of  bringing  the  pupil  into  the  habit 
and  spirit  of  industrial  life.  It  is  in  the  school  that  the 
pupil  passes  from  capricious  play  to  systematic  and  con- 
tinuous effort  to  some  end  beyond  that  of  mere  activity 
itself.  To  make  this  transition  from  play  to  work  effec- 
tive, the  work  must  carry  with  it  the  joy  of  play.  In  the 
highest  art  of  labor,  and  in  the  most  effective  social 
industry,  work  has  a  reward  in  the  activity  itself.  Work 
to  the  artist  workman  is  as  play  to  the  child:  in  both 
there  is  the  joy  of  free  activity, —  in  the  former  the  result, 
besides  the  activity,  is  a  useful  end;  in  the  latter,  there 
is  no  end  beyond  the  activity  itself.  The  philosophy  of 
the  kindergarten  games  and  gifts  is  in  the  fact  of  trans- 
forming play  into  work,  while  still  maintaining  the  reward 
of  the  activity  in  the  activity  itself.  The  public  school, 
artfully  managed,  is  the  very  institution  to  supply  to 
society  members  who  are  not  simply  industrious  by  force 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE  LAW.  207 

of  conviction  and  habit,  but  who  have  the  joy  of  industry 
in  the  heart, — members  who  are  free  men  in  the  love 
of  wholesome  labor,  rather  than  slaves  to  the  inexorable 
requirements  of  the  hard  industrial  world. 

"  Work  thou  for  pleasure ;  paint,  or  sing,  or  carve 
The  thing  thou  lovest,  thougii  the  body  starve. 
Who  works  for  glory  misses  oft  the  goal ; 
Who  works  for  money  carves  his  very  soul. 
Work  for  tlie  work's  sake,  theu ;  and  it  may  be. 
That  these  things  shall  be  added  unto  thee. " 

In  the  pursuits  of  life  under  the  law  of  industry,  one 
individual  will  traverse  the  path  of  another,  and  come  in 
conflict  with  him,  unless  restrained  b}*  a  proper  sense  of 
the  rights  of  others.  Thus,  the  integrity  and  welfare  of 
society  further  requires  the  cultivation  of  the  restraining 
sense  of: — 

Justice. — As  defined  by  Herbert  Spencer,  justice  is  the 
equal  freedom  of  action;  or,  to  put  it  in  his  own  words, 
as  found  in  his  "Social  Statics,"  in  which,  and  also  in  his 
"Principles  of  Ethics,'"  he  has  forcibly  elaborated  the 
doctrine:  '"Every  man  has  freedom  to  do  as  he  wills,  pro- 
vided he  infringes  not  the  equal  freedom  of  an}"  other 
man."  In  absence  of  the  social  relation  of  justice,  neitlier 
the  school  nor  any  other  institution,  nor  society  as  a 
whole,  can  maintain  its  organic  life.  Absolute  injustice 
may  readily  be  seen  to  be  absolute  disorganization.  Pupils 
cannot  invade  the  rights  of  each  other,  nor  teacher  and 
pupils  make  mutual  invasions,  without  dissolution  of  the 
organism  to  the  extent  of  the  invasion.  Hence,  justice 
in  the  school  is  onl}'  another  jdiaso  of  the  law  of  unity  j 


208  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

and  to  train  pupils  into  the  liaLit  and  sentiment  of  justice, 
the  teacher  need  only  to  manage  the  school  thoroughly 
with  reference  to  its  primary  law. 

How  the  pupil  is  thus  required  to  practice  justice  is 
quite  obvious.  For  instance,  in  order  that  class  woi'k  may 
proceed,  each  pu})il  in  tlie  class  must  consider  the  rights 
of  every  other  in  tlie  class,  and  subordinate  his  own 
caprices  and  desires  to  their  good.  In  every  case  of  self- 
regulation  the  welfare  of  the  class  is  consulted,  and  the 
pupil  must  bring  himself  into  line  with  that  welfare.  He 
puts  the  individual  self  down  for  the  general  good.  And 
so  it  must  be  with  reference  to  the  school  as  a  whole;  the 
individual  has  many  desires  which  are  crossed  by  the 
requirements  of  the  school  as  a  whole.  At  every  turn  he 
must  stop  to  consider  what  the  good  of  the  whole  in  the 
interests  of  its  members  requires  of  him.  To  that  he 
must  render  obedience.  This  is  a  universal  form  of 
morality, — the  putting  down  of  an  individual  preference 
for  a  general  good.  Such  is  the  requirement  of  virtuous 
citizenship.  Patriotism  —  justice  intensified  —  is  the  feel- 
ing which  enables  one  to  sacrifice  self  for  the  good  of 
country  and  humanity.  "We  have  much  to  say  about 
training  for  citizenship,  and  devise  means  through  the 
study  of  civics  and  history  to  prepare  for  that  duty. 
But  no  means  ever  devised  is  more  potent  than  an  efficient 
system  of  school  management.  Under  this  the  pupil  has 
the  citizen's  experience, — lives  a  real  citizen's  life.  He 
is  required  to  think  his  own  conduct  as  a  member  of  the 
little   school- world,  and   is  thus  trained   into   citizenship 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  209 

habit.  In  the  otlier  way  he  merely  theorizes  about 
citizenship.  It  is  not  more  or  different  studies  needed  in 
school  in  order  to  cultivate  this  virtue,  but  a  more  efficient 
system  of  school  management.  Civics  in  the  blood  is 
more  vital  than  civics  in  the  head.  Especially  unpromis- 
ing is  the  newest  metliod  of  teaching  patriotisni  by  the 
galvanic  process  of  ritualism.  Nothing  but  patriotic 
experience  through  the  concrete  situations  of  life  can  call 
forth  the  desired  virtue.  Pretence  and  formalism  are 
death;  while  the  altruistic  demands  made  on  the  pupil  in 
due  course  of  a  well-regulated  school  life  are  potent  and 
healthful  influences  in  the  cultivation  of  a  patriotic  spirit. 

And  thus  we  have  already  passed  from  justice  to  the 
climax  of  school  and  social  virtue,  that  of :  — 

Altruism.  —  Under  this  sentiment  tlie  individual  does 
more  than  simply  avoid  interference  with  the  rights  of 
others,  and  now  positively  seeks  their  good.  This,  there- 
fore, is  the  completely  unifying  social  virtue.  If  all  were 
dominated  by  an  altruistic  spirit,  society  would  move  for- 
ward as  one  harmonious  whole.  Hence,  this  is  the  virtue 
which  in  common  thought  and  literature  is  exalted  above 
every  other;  it  is  the  chief  glory  of  Him  who  went  about 
doing  good. 

At  the  outset  we  found  this  to  be  the  necessary  attitude 
of  the  teacher  towards  his  pupils;  and  without  tlie  same 
feeling  of  mutual  lidpfulness  among  impils,  scliocd  life 
would  be  dreary  and  incomplete.  The  kindergarten 
properly  makes  much  of  this  spirit,  and  it  is  claimed  that 
such  is  the  fundamental  basis  of  all  school  work.     Thia 

U 


210  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

may  well  be  accepted  if  we  expand  the  idea  of  altruism 
to  include  all  forms  of  self-forgetfulness  in  the  spirit  of 
the  world  lying  objective  to  the  pupil.  In  this  larger 
sense  altruism  is  the  last  word  either  in  method  of  thought 
or  of  action.  The  highest  principle  of  instruction  already 
advocated  in  "The  Philosophy  of  Teaching,"  and  now 
presented  in  conclusion  as  the  truest  principle  of  manage- 
ment, is  that  of  immediate  self-forgetfulness  in  the  envi- 
ronment of  truth  and  life  in  which  the  pupil  lives  and 
moves  and  has  his  being. 

The  highest  outcome  of  such  an  appeal  to  altruistic  con- 
sciousness in  both  instruction  and  management  is  a  realiz- 
ing sense  of  the  rational  order  of  the  universe;  that  there 
is  reason  and  law  above  the  individual  to  which  he  must 
bow  assent,  if  he  would  realize  his  destiny.  The  school, 
beginning  with  the  little  concrete  world  immediately 
about  the  pupil,  including  the  school  itself,  gradually 
opens  his  eyes  to  the  fact  that  his  own  highest  good  is 
to  be  at  one  with  the  divine  order  of  things.  Gradually, 
and  by  long  experience,  it  dawns  upon  him  that  the  reason 
in  the  larger  world  about  him  is  his  reason,  and  that  he 
must  conform  to  this  reason  if  he  would  achieve  the 
highest  good.  He  comes  finally  by  habit  and  insight  to 
seek  the  divine  order  of  the  world  to  make  it  his  order. 

And  thus  we  are  reminded  that  altruism  is  not  an  end, 
but  only  a  method  of  thought  and  action;  that  while  it  is 
more  blessed  to  give  than  to  receive,  one  always  receives 
more  than  he  gives.  We  speak  of  cultivating  the  social 
virtues  for  the  good  of  society;   but  society  is  an  empty 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECL'TIXG   TiiK    LAW.  211 

abstraction  apart  from  the  concrete  lives  of  the  indi- 
viduals. A  social  virtue  is,  after  all,  a  personal  and 
private  virtue.  Kindness,  gentleness,  mercy,  and  love 
have  more  worth  to  the  subject  than  to  the  object  of  them. 
But  these  have  no  meaning  except  in  attarlnnent  to  others; 
and  the  only  method  of  cultivating  them  is  through  the 
immediate  consciousness  of  their  object  and  not  their  sub- 
ject. The  practice  of  altruism  returns  as  personal  wortli 
in  some  form,  else  why  be  altruistic,  if  human  worth  is 
the  goal  of  education?  The  proximate  end  is  certainly 
another  person  or  another  truth;  but  the  teacher,  in  train* 
ing  to  practical  knowledge  and  social  virtues,  should  not 
forget  Kant's  maxim:  "So  act  as  to  consider  every  man 
as  an  end  in  himself,  and  never  as  a  means  only."  The 
pupil  must  lose  his  life,  but  a' ways  in  order  to  find  it. 
Through  efficient  school  management  the  pupil  is  required 
to  deny  liimself ,  to  sacrifice  himself,  for  the  good  of  others 
and  the  institution  as  a  whole;  but  this  is  only  his  proper 
subjective  discipline,  and  the  school  as  a  whole  is  only 
his  own  rational  nature,  at  first  unrecognized.  So  while 
he,  out  of  respect  to  others  and  devotion  to  the  school, 
practises  politeness,  order,  truthfulness,  industry,  justice, 
and  love,  his  own  life  is  being  disciplined  and  enriched 
by  these  virtues.  All  high  achievement  for  self,  as  well 
as  for  humanity,  comes  through  a  self-forgetful  devotion 
to  a  universal  objective  good;  yet  tlie  ultimate  test  of 
ethical  training  is  its  personal,  private,  and  subjective 
value.  The  ultimate  test  for  management  is  tlie  same  as 
that  already  set  up  for  instruction  in  the  "Thilosophy  of 


212  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

Teaching,"  —  namely,  the  self-realization  of  the  indi- 
vidual, which  is  best  explained  by  the  words,  rational 
freedom,  or  the  power  to  choose  and  live  in  the  highest 
good.  Hence,  the  ultimate  etliical  question  for  school 
management  is,  how  does  the  securing  of  unity  to  the  end 
of  instruction  discipline  to:  — 

Rational  Freedom.  —  The  law  of  the  school  requires 
each  pupil  to  bring  himself  into  unity  with  the  organiza- 
tion, and  thus  he  must  limit  his  customary,  free,  irre- 
sponsible conduct;  must  harmonize  his  actions  with  others, 
and  direct  his  effort  to  serious  worthy  attainment. 

When  the  child  enters  school,  his  actions  are  chiefly 
controlled  by  caprice.  He  has  not  been  trained  to  sub- 
ordinate his  likes  and  his  dislikes  to  the  attainment  of  a 
rational  object.  In  school  for  the  first  time,  perhaps,  he 
is  held  to  systematic  effort  to  attain  some  good  beyond  his 
immediate  desires.  By  the  nature  of  the  school  organiza- 
tion he  is  compelled  to  limit  himself  to  a  given  task,  at  a 
given  time  and  place.  No  phase  of  school  work  is  more 
beautiful,  or  more  suggestive  of  educative  power,  than  a 
school-room  of  children  brought  into  the  unity  of  an 
industrious  effort  to  attain  some  worthy  object.  The  very 
nature  of  the  school  requires  self-limitation  on  the  part 
of  each  pupil,  and  no  form  of  training  could  be  more 
directly  in  the  line  of  moral  habit  and  moral  ponder.  All 
forms  of  combination  in  school  work  help  to  enthrone 
reason  and  will  above  desire  and  caprice, — help  to  exalt 
the  spiritual  man  above  the  natural  man.  The  exact 
combination   of    a    gymnastic    exercise    requires    a   high 


THE  ORGANISM  EXECUTING  THE   LAW.  213 

tension  of  will  to  control  the  body;  and  tins  strengthens 
the  power  of  the  soul  to  rule  its  naturalness.  The  ethical 
culture  of  gymnastic  drill  is  of  more  value  than  its 
physical  training. 

Thus  the  nature  of  the  school  organization  forces  the 
pupil  to  self-limitation.  But  the  })upil  is  not  morally  free 
until  he  needs  no  such  specific  external  means  to  self- 
control.  The  school  controls  conduct  in  specific  and 
minute  waj's;  but  through  this  control  the  pupil  is  gradu- 
ally to  grow  stronger,  so  that  he  will,  by  and  by,  need 
less  direct  and  immediate  help  from  the  organization, 
until  at  last  he  becomes  wise  enough  to  set  up  his  own  law 
of  conduct,  and  strong  enougli  to  render  obedience  without 
the  help  of  master  and  machiner}-.  As  a  result  of  school 
discipline,  the  pupil  should  be  enabled,  in  the  light  of 
reason,  to  set  up  his  own  standard  of  action,  and  by  habit 
and  strength  of  will  to  bring  himself  imder  the  law 
thus  set  up.  It  will  be  here  recalled  by  the  reader  that 
tlie  plan  of  management  discussed  in  the  preceding  pages, 
with  the  view  of  securing  the  unity  essential  to  instruc- 
tion, is  exactly  in  line  witli  that  of  securing  the  ethical 
freedom  of  conduct  here  noted.  At  all  stages  of  his  course 
the  student  is  to  explain  the  reason  for  a  given  course  of 
action,  and  then  to  make  his  decision  in  favor  of  the  line 
indicated.  The  pupil  m\ist  tlius  bo  released  gradually 
from  obedience  to  mere  authority.  The  teaclier  must 
take  pains  to  put  the  pupil  under  his  own  guidance.  The 
teacher  controls  too  much,  leaving  too  little  for  the  pupil. 
For  the  child  sitting  by  the  stove  to  move,  without  iiermis- 


214  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

sion,  because  too  warm,  is  better  than  to  move  with  per- 
mission. Under  such  circumstances  pupils  are  sometimes 
ordered  back  to  remain  until  they  get  permission  from 
headquarters.  The  pupil  then  raises  the  hand;  the  teacher 
nods  consent;  then  matters  are  in  good  condition  because 
the  pupil  has  rendered  obedience  to  authority.  But  such 
obedience  confers  no  power  of  self-direction;  whereas 
such  power  would  be  cultivated  if  the  pupil  debate  the 
question  and  decide  for  himself.  This  idea  of  obedience 
to  a  teacher  is  full  of  mischief.  The  pupil  should  obey 
the  law  inherent  in  the  case,  which  he  himself  is  able  to 
expound  and  set  up  as  his  only  master.  In  an  important 
sense,  the  pupil  should  do  as  he  pleases.  The  teacher 
must  let  him  alone,  and  watch  his  actions  and  tendencies. 
Suppose  a  pupil  in  the  primary  room  should  go  to  the 
water-pail  three  times  during  a  recitation,  would  it  not  be 
well  to  let  him  go  without  interruption;  and  then  during 
the  day,  at  some  convenient  time,  —  unless  too  much  going, 
make  an  immediate  demand,  —  to  have  a  general  discus- 
sion as  to  how  long  a  pupil  can  do  without  water  before 
suffering;  and  whether,  if  a  pupil's  wants  have  all  been 
supplied  before  the  beginning  of  a  recitation,  he  could 
suffer  before  the  close?  And  then  permit  pupils  to  point 
out  tlie  interruption  occasioned  if  all  should  thus  fre- 
quently visit  the  water-pail.  Personal  mention  of  the 
offender  need  not  be  made,  but  he  should  be  drawn  into 
the  discussion.  Or,  if  thought  best,  he  alone  might 
discuss  the  matter  with  the  teacher.  No  matter  about 
details;  I  mean  only  to  insist  that  the  student  be  led  to 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING  THE    LAW  215 

set  up  his  own  standard  of  action  and  make  his  own 
decision  in  regard  to  it,  so  far  as  possible,  without  any 
regard  for  the  mere  authority  of  tlie  teacher. 

This  reminds  one  that  there  are  two  kinds  of  discipli- 
narians,—  one  who,  by  the  force  of  authority,  maintains 
the  appearance  of  good  order;  the  other  causes  good  order 
to  arise  within  the  pupil.  Wliat  often  passes  for  good 
order  is  quite  the  opposite  5  and  the  so-called  good  dis- 
ciplinarian secures  only  the  temporary  form  of  discipline. 
This  is  the  heavy-handed  drill  master  who,  by  force,  may 
quell  a  mob,  but  who  can  never  prevent  the  occurrence  of 
one.  And,  too,  the  appearance  of  order  is  good  only  while 
pupils  are  in  the  immediate  presence  of  the  master.  No 
teacher  is  worthy  the  name  of  disciplinarian  who  does  not 
strengthen  the  pupil  to  govern  himself  after  lie  turns  tin' 
corner  of  the  school-house.  An  able-bodied  man  may 
crush  a  school  into  fearful  silence,  which  is  the  worst  of 
disorder;  but  the  teacher  —  and  such  may  be  a  timid  lady 
—  who  can  cause  order  to  orii^'inate  in  tlie  understanding 
and  consent  of  the  pupil,  whether  securing  the  same 
beautiful  and  formal  external  appearance  or  not,  is  the 
true  disciplinarian.  A  mnjority  of  teachers,  from  the 
common  school  to  the  college  president,  wlio  have  been 
noted  for  disciplinary  power,  have  gained  Iheir  notoriety 
on  the  score  of  external  crushing  power  over  the  student. 
And  by  this  I  do  not  mean  the  apjdieation  of  physical 
force;  there  arc  a  thousand  and  one  wiiys  of  intimidating 
and  bribing  a  student  into  the  semblance  of  good  conduct. 
The   pupil  may  be  enticed  with  rewards,  roll  of  honor, 


216  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

good  will  of  teacher,  and  divers  kinds  of  favors;  or  threat- 
ened with  loss  of  ])rivileges,  with  demerits,  with  lowering 
of  grades;  with  whatever  rack  and  torture  desperate  inge- 
nuity can  devise.  I  know  what  proud  success  teachers 
report  to  have  achieved  by  this,  that,  and  the  other  dis- 
ciplinary device  of  fear  or  favor;  but,  beneath  the  surface, 
it  surely  can  be  but  a  questionable  success.  It  may  be 
that  a  teacher  must  hold  the  fort  temporarily  by  such 
external  forces;  but  he  should  be  ashamed  to  report 
success  till  the  pupils  see  the  reason  of  proper  conduct  as 
grounded  in  the  school  itself,  and  voluntarily  make  the 
law  of  the  school  the  law  of  their  behavior. 

The  true  disciplinary  poAver  of  school  management  is 
Avell  illustrated  in  the  method  of  punishment,  already  dis- 
cussed. Suppose  the  young  lady  who  communicates  in 
school  be  kept  in  to  make  up  lost  time ;  or  that  the  time 
be  doubled,  and  still  multiplied  until  it  becomes  so  un- 
pleasant that  she  finally  desists.  It  has  been  shown  that 
unity  in  such  a  case  is  not  secured;  for  the  unity  desired 
is  in  the  will  of  the  student.  While  apparently  at  one 
with  the  school,  she  is  not  really  so ;  for  to  be  so  she  must 
purpose  with  the  school.  But  more  important  still,  such 
a  method  of  procedure  fails  to  cultivate  the  power  of 
rational  self-control.  If  she  had  been  required,  as  insisted 
on  in  preceding  pages,  to  explain  the  law  inherent  in  the 
school  against  such  conduct,  and  then  to  take  charge  of 
herself  in  the  light  of  the  law,  the  temporary  end  of 
management  would  not  only  have  been  more  enectively 
secured,  but  there  would  have  been  a  gain  in  general 


THE   ORGANISM   EXECUTING   THK   LAW.  217 

power  to  rule  the  spirit  in  the  light  of  reason.  Every 
time  the  pupil  is  led  to  resolve  that  he  will  take  charge 
of  himself,  the  teacher  has  aecomplished  a  victory  for 
righteousness.  This  is  a  daily  and  almost  hourly  oppor- 
tunity. The  whole  spirit  of  management,  and  promi- 
nently that  of  punishment,  requires  constantly  just  such 
a  resolution.  Thus  the  true  means  of  securing  unity  as 
a  condition  to  instruction  is  the  true  means  of  ethical 
discipline. 

And  thus  in  every  phase  of  school  management,  the 
pupil  is  led  to  adoi)t  reason  and  law  as  tlie  guide  to 
conduct;  and  through  this  is  discii)lined  to  the  power  of 
choosing  the  highest  good,  the  true  self,  as  against  the 
claims  of  the  lower  nature.  Such  supremacy  of  the  higher 
over  the  lower  self  comes  from  the  int<dligent  and  free 
adoption  by  the  pupil  of  the  school  as  his  own  rational 
nature  objectified.  The  school's  inherent  laws  of  polite- 
ness, order,  truthfulness,  industry,  justice,  and  love,  are 
liis  own  requirements  of  the  school;  and  these  return  into 
his  own  life  through  his  obedience  to  them  in  a  form  whicli 
he  himself,  without  at  first  discerning  it,  projects.  In  the 
development  of  the  fundamental  law  of  management  it 
was  argued  that  tlie  scliool  is  well  managed  and  firmly 
grounded  only  through  the  pupil's  conscious  adoption  of 
it  as  his  school,  —  as  the  projection  of  his  own  rational 
needs.  This  fact  now  appears  as  the  fundamental  liar- 
mony  of  the  whole  process,  in  that  the  same  adoption  is 
the  essential  feature  in  the  process  of  ethical  trainincr. 
As  at  the  outset,  we  saw  the  school  evolving  out  of  the 


218  SCHOOL  MANAGEMENT. 

requirements  of  the  pupil's  own  nature,  so  now  we  see 
it  dissolving  as  ethical  elements  into  the  life  whence  it 
came.  Hence,  school  management  secures,  aside  from 
instruction,  the  self-realization  of  the  pupil  through  his 
unity  with  the  rational  nature  of  the  school;  and  from 
tiiis,  through  unity  with  the  law  and  reason  of  the  world 
into  which  the  school  leads;  which  reason,  law,  and  order 
will,  too,  gradually  appear  as  his  true  other  self;  so  that 
he  can  but  know  that  to  realize  his  destiny  he  must 
conform  to  the  divine  spirit  and  order  of  the  world,  as 
manifested  in  nature  and  life  everywhere  about  him. 

Thus  every  institution  becomes  a  constant  appeal  to  his 
true  nature ;  the  kingdom  of  heaven  is  seen  to  be  the 
realization  of  the  divine  life  of  the  individual.  And  thus, 
too,  by  extension,  the  world  becomes  a  reflection  of  the 
individual;  the  heavens  which  declare  the  glory  of  God, 
declare  also  his  glory ;  everything  becomes  a  pillar  of 
cloud  by  day,  and  a  pillar  of  fire  by  night  to  lead  the 
individual  out  of  the  Egyptian  bondage  of  his  lower  nature 
into  the  realm  of  spiritual  life  and  freedom. 

"Over  our  manhood  bend  the  skies ; 

Against  our  fallen  and  traitor  lives 
The  great  winds  utter  prophecies  ; 

With  our  faint  heart  the  mountain  strives;  ' 
Its  arras  outstretched,  the  druid  wood 

Waits  with  its  benedicite ; 
And  to  our  age's  drowsy  blood 

Still  shouts  the  inspiring  sea." 


INDEX. 


A  Graded  Course  of  Study,  illu-ira- 

tion  of,  120-124. 
Absence,  law  against,  70. 
Absent,  159. 

Abuses  of  graded  system,  114. 
Administraiion,  school,  22. 
Advice,  180 

Alters,  every  lesson,  58. 
Altruism,  209. 
Antagonistic,  7,  68. 
Application  of  the  law,  162. 
Artificial  stimulus,  185. 
Assimilates,  the  pn|)il,  46. 
Authority,  108. 

Behavior,  17. 

Bishop,  51. 

Blackboard,  81. 

Bunker  Hill,  battle  of,  139. 

Books,  supply  of,  8. 

Boss,  170. 

Branches  to  be  taught,  60. 

Burden  of  correction,  164. 

Canada,  27. 

Carpeting,  72. 

Change  of  work,  138. 

Church,  as  teacher,  40. 

Class,  the  size  of,  71,  109. 

Classes,  pupils  taught  in,  114  ;  num- 
ber for  teacher,  127. 

Class-book,  155. 

Classification,  109,  115  ;  difficulties  of, 
118. 

Cleveland,  schools  of,  88. 


Combination,  influence  of  social,  196. 

Commissioner  of  Education,  16,  18. 

Communicable  relations,  73. 

Compulsory  law,  68. 

Condition  of  pupils,  134,  141. 

Conscious  and  unconscious  tuition,  45 

Consciousness,  professional,66 ;  growth 
of,  68. 

Consultation,  25. 

Contact,  personal,  69. 

Corporal  punishment,  171. 

Correct,  163. 

Correction,  purpose  of,  159. 

Correlation,  63. 

Course  of  study,  62;  underlying  prin- 
ciples of,  63;  illustrated   i20-124. 

Court  Houses,  73. 

Crime,  27. 

Davipson,  Thomas,  quotation   from, 

19.5. 
Denoting,  necessity  for,  119. 
Desks,  the   rows,  74;    cleared,   143; 

pupil  cut,  180. 
Development,  the  teacher  needed,  67. 
Differenliate<l,  the  teacher,  38. 
Disciplinarians,  215. 
Disorder,  most  cases  of,  165. 
Directions,  143. 
Director,  88,  99. 
Directors,  7. 

Economy  of  energ>-,  76. 
Education,  hist^iry  of   justifiabl*-,  11; 
consifltA  in,  39. 


220 


INDEX. 


Educational  public, 89;  sentiment,  102. 

Elements  of  professional  spirit,  G6. 

Emulation,  194. 

Energy,  economy  of,  75;  wasted,  184. 

Environment,  not  break  witii,  12;  liie 
child's  touch  with,  38;  pupil  edu- 
cated througli,  184. 

Ethical  training,  183. 

Examinations,  189;  a  quotation  on, 
190. 

Exclusion  from  school,  171. 

Executing  the  law,  the  organism,  103. 

Explanations,  150. 

External  authority,  168. 

Family  as  teacher,  40. 

Fitch,  quotation  from,  190. 

Forgetting,  danger  of,  29. 

Formal  school  arises,  36. 

Freedom,    in    vocation,  41  ;    rational, 

212. 
Fundamental  law,  1. 

Good,  the  ultimate,  53. 

Gradation,  114;  tirst  step  in,  116;  of 

pupils,  117;  difiicult'es  of,  118. 
Grading  country  schools,  115. 
Grasp,    complex    functions,   65;    the 

school,  107. 
Guessing,  155. 

Harmony,  65;    of  means  and  end, 

185  ;  of  the  whole  process,  217. 
Hawthorne,  4G. 
History,  8. 

Honor,  false  sense  of,  176. 
Hyde,  Dr.,  quotation  from,  9. 

Idea,  everything  exists  in,  4 ;  origi- 
nates school,  5  ;  loyal  to,  8. 

Ideal,  the  pupil's,  44,  48,  49 ;  teacher, 
92. 

Ideals,  49. 

Identity,  point  of,  19. 

Illustration  of  a  graded  course  of 
study,  120. 

Incendiary,  178. 

Incentives,  186. 


Industry,  205. 

Intluence,  su.sceptible  to,  46. 

Inherent  difficulties.  118. 

Inetitutions  arise,  31. 

Instruction,  supervision  of,  86;  con- 
dition of,  97  ;  the  organism  in  the 
process  of,  104;  two  kinds  of,  184. 

Instruments  of  scliool  work,  81. 

Intermediate  grades,  170. 

Janitor.  98. 
Jerusalem,  xii. 
Justice,  207. 

K^RAMOS,  Longfellow's,  48. 
Kindergarten  teacher,  55. 

Laboratory,  81. 

Law  of  unity,  1;  of  tlie  school,  1; 
fundamental,  7  ;  broadest  aspect  of, 
requires,  14:  application  of  to  pun- 
ishment, 175  ;  evolving  the  organ- 
ism, 35 

Lectures,  150. 

Library,  82. 

Life-meaning,  conscious  of,  59. 

Lighting,  77. 

Lincoln,  allusion  to,  28,  38. 

Longfellow,  K^ramos,  48. 

INIachinery,  necessity  for,  29. 

Man  takes  active  part  in  own  devel- 
opment, 35. 

Manage,  xi. 

Management,  worst  stroke  of,  23 ;  of 
a  school,  25;  ditficulties  of.  176. 

Mclntyre,  quotation  from,  38. 

Motives  to  study,  188,  194. 

Movement,  obstacles  in  forward,  152. 

Movements,  unnecessary,  79. 

Nature  as  teacher,  40. 
Needlework,  64. 
Noise,  79. 

Objects,  removed  from  desk,  78. 
Obstacles  in  forward  movement,  152. 
Offence,  159,  161. 


INDEX. 


221 


Order.  202. 

Organic  thought,  G4;  unity  in,  110. 

Organization  of  the  school.  108. 

Organism,  law  of,  1;  the  law  evolving 
the,  35  ;  executing  the  law,  103  ;  in 
process  of  instruction,  104. 

Pai.issy,  48. 

Patriotism,  208. 

Per  cents,  ISO. 

Personal  contact,  69. 

riiilosophy  of  Teaching,  33,  210. 

Picture  from  life,  144. 

Plato,  allusion  to,  2<). 

Politeness,  198. 

'Possum  Kingdom  School,  113. 

Practice,  viii. 

Pre|)aration  of  lesson.  136. 

Prepossessing  moods,  80. 

Problem,  132. 

Problems,  one  of  the  serious,  10  ;  inter- 
esting and  difficult,  30. 

Process,  school  management,  vii  ; 
school  an  organic,  1. 

Professional  spirit,  48;  two  phases, 
52;  not  in  conflict,  54;  more  than 
a  susceptibility,  57;  consciousness 
of  subject-matter,  60;  sensitiveness 
to  unity  of  organism,  64. 

Program,  the,  130. 

Promoting,  necessity  for,  129. 

Puebl.)  jilan,  112. 

Punishment,  law  of,  158. 

Pupil,  to  report,  177. 

Pupils  ideal,  44. 

Qualities  in  teadier,  unifyin?,  38;  se- 
cured,84;  distinctions  not  patent, 100. 
Questions,  140. 
Questioning  classes,  148. 

Rational  freedom.  212. 
Recital  ion,  memoriter,  154. 
Rcfonns  in  colleges,  56. 
Reinstate  himself,  1G4, 
Reinstated,  166. 

Relation  of  teacher  and  pupil,  com- 
municable, 73. 


Repetition,  153. 

Report,  pupil  to,  177. 

Requirement,  the  broadest,  13;  of  pro- 

f-.'ssional  spirit,  54;  the  last,  62. 
Restoration  of  broken  unity,  157. 
Restore  the  unity,  162. 
Retribution,  158. 

Salary,  insufficient,  41;  increase  of, 
42:  not  personal  inducement,  42,  51. 

School,  organic  process,  law  of,  ]  ; 
spiritual  unity,  3;  elements  of,  5; 
outline  of  process,  6;  the  real  "chool, 
13  ;  created  by  students,  22;  ulti- 
mate law  of,  31;  supervision,  85. 

School  punisliment,  162. 

School-room,  72. 

Seating,  law  of,  74. 

Seats,  76. 

Self,  the,  59. 

Serpent,  shows  wisdom.  10. 

Silence,  the  law  of,  202. 

Social  comliination,  infiu<»nce  of,  196. 

Society,  196. 

Socrates,  60,  l-»6. 

Spencer,  Herbert,  quotation  from,  3. 

Spiritual  unity,  15;  of  the  pupil  him- 
.self,  21. 

Stale,  x;  proclaims  laws,  2;  policy,  24. 

Statute,  7. 

Stevens,  Professor,  190. 

Stone  Face,  the  Great,  46. 

Student,  creates  school,  21. 

Subject,  a  mental  process,  02. 

Subject  matter,  01. 

Superintendent,  18,  87;  test  of,  91; 
selected,  97. 

Supervising  conditions  of  instruction, 
97. 

Supervisiiin,  8.");  limitations  of,  99. 

Sympathy,  108. 

System,  lixed,  8;  centre  of,  18;  of 
city  schools,  126. 

Tact,  ix. 

Teacher,  conscious  of,  20  ;  distinction 

between,    and   other    agencic<<,   39; 

ideal  of  pupil,  4.*);  nothing  but,  57; 


222 


INDFA'. 


every  lesson  the,  58 ;  selecting  the, 

90;   aiding  the,  92. 
Teaching,  70. 
Temperature,  77. 
Tension,  10;  between  real  and  ideal, 

12,  with  subject,  187. 
Tested,  a  school  organization  is,  13. 
Testing  school  management,  181. 
Truancy,  70. 
Truantj  163. 
Theory,  viii. 
Trustees,  township,  27. 
Truthfulness,  203. 
Truth-loving,  45. 
Tuition,    conscious  and    unconscious, 

40. 

Ultimate  end,  conscious  of,  58. 

Uniformity,  117;  of  texts,  118. 

University,  a  state,  14;  student,  167. 

Unifying  qualities  in  teacher,  38;  con- 
ditions of  teacher  and  pupil,  G7. 

Unit}',  law  of,  co-operative,  16;  must 
not  be  violated,  30 ;  in  school  as  a 


whole,  105;  in  class  studying,  133; 
in  class  reciting,    141;    mainly   s-e- 
cnred,  156 ;   restoration  of  broken, 
157. 
Utopia,  an  educational,  12. 

Valuk,  ethical,  to  the  student,  25. 

Ventilation,  77. 

Violated,  law  quite  commonly,  27. 

Vividly  conscious,  .59. 

Vocation,  freedom  in,  41;  choice  of, 

43. 
Vote,  why  teach,  40. 

Warning  the  teacher,  106. 

Waves  circle  out,  58. 

Weight,  exact,  155. 

Whispers,  158,  160. 

Whispering,  159. 

Whole,  unity  in  school  as  a,  105. 

Will,  offence  in,  159. 

AVork,  207. 

Worry,  179. 

Wrong  act,  159. 


ANNOUNCEMENTS 


SOCIAL    EDUCATION 

By  COLIN   ALEXANDER  SCOTT 
Head  of  the  Department  of  Psycholog)-,  Boston  Normal  School 


i2mo.       xi  +  300  pages.       List  price,  51.25  ;   mailing  price,  Si. 3 5 


SOCIAL  EDUCATION  is  a  handbook  for  teachers  who 
think.  It  is  a  plain  and  practical  account  of  the  life  of 
the  school  from  the  standpoint  of  the  social  forces  which 
are  ever  at  work  among  pupils  of  all  ages.  It  is  not  based 
upon  mere  ideals  or  philosophical  abstractions  but  upon 
countless  observations  of  schools  of  various  kinds  from  the 
kindergarten  up  to  the  college  grades.  It  is  not  the  child 
as  a  separate  individual,  but  children  as  they  are  actually 
found  in  classes  and  groups  in  and  out  of  the  school,  which 
form  the  principal  subject  of  discussion.  The  book  is  full 
of  the  actual  activities  of  living  children,  and  its  aim  is  to 
show  how  these  can  be  made  more  productive,  more  ethical, 
and  more  happy  and  spontaneous,  —  not  sacrificing,  but 
promoting  and  intensifying  thereby,  the  scholarship  and  the 
truest  discipline  of  the  school. 

Mr.  Colin  A.  Scott's  careful  study  of  Social  Education  leaves 
its  readers  duly  impressed  with  the  supreme  and  overwhelming 
importance  of  understanding  the  child  at  every  step  of  his  career, 
of  making  his  citizenship  date  from  his  school  days,  of  molding 
him,  through  the  principle  of  organization,  into  an  active  and  intel- 
ligent member  of  the  state.  The  book  is  sincere,  earnest,  ardent. 
There  is  no  flaw  to  be  found  in  its  reasoning.  We  wish  Dr.  Keate 
could  have  had  the  advantage  of  reading  it  before  he  became  head 
master  of  the  Eaton  School.  —  Life. 


GINN  AND   COxMPANV   Publishers 


AMONG    COUNTRY    SCHOOLS 

By  O.  J.    KERN 
Superintendent  of  Schools,  Winnebago  County,  Illinois 


I2mo.     Cloth.     366  pages.     Illustrated.     List  price,  $l.l^-j   mailing  price,  $1.35 


THE  author's  endeavor  in  preparing  this  work  has 
been  to  create  a  new  ideal  in  the  training  of  the 
country  child. 

The  book  is  the  result  of  seven  years  of  very  earnest 
thought  and  hard  work  in  an  endeavor  to  secure  for  the 
country  child  his  rights  so  far  as  an  educational  opportunity 
is  concerned.  The  country  school  should  have  that  freedom 
which  country  life  affords.  This  book  has  but  little  to  say 
about  the  mechanics  of  school  management. 

In  the  training  of  children  and  the  development  of  char- 
acter no  greater  opportunity  can  be  offered  than  that  now 
presented  to  the  teacher  in  the  country  school.  The  author 
hopes  that  this  book  will  prove  suggestive  to  the  teacher  and 
school  ofificer  who  are  striving  for  the  spiritualization  of 
country  life  through  the  medium  of  the  school.  He  believes 
that  a  careful  reading  of  its  pages  will  show  a  practical  way 
of  interesting  the  "farm  child  through  farm  topics." 

Some  of  the  chapter  titles,  indicating  the  suggestions  given 
in  this  distinctly  novel  treatise,  are  : 

THE  RIGHTS   OF  THE  COUNTRY  CHILD 

OUTDOOR  ART  — BEAUTIFYING  SCHOOL  GROUNDS 

INDOOR  ART  AND  DECORATION 

A  FARMER  BOY'S  EXPERIMENT  CLUB 

THE  COUNTRY  SCHOOL  AND  THE  FARMERS'  INSTITUTE 


GINN   &   COMPANY  Publishers 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 

Los  Angeles 

This  book  is  DUE  on  the  last  date  stamped  below. 


1 


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J^CHOOL, 


